


A Matter of Trust

by EmpressNariko



Category: Naruto
Genre: Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Blood and Injury, Clone Sex, Depression, Edgeplay, Explicit Sexual Content, F/M, Fluff and Smut, Foursome - F/M/M/M, Multiple Sex Positions, PWP, Physical Abuse, Psychological Torture, Sexual Content, Sexual Tension, Smut, Teasing, Torture, mention of abandonment, mention of prostitution, mention of rape
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-12
Updated: 2020-12-12
Packaged: 2021-02-26 06:28:38
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 22
Words: 176,109
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21769138
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/EmpressNariko/pseuds/EmpressNariko
Summary: **COMPLETE** Trust is one of the key foundations of a Konoha shinobi: who can you trust, how deeply can you trust them, do they trust you? But trust starts from within. Kakashi and Sakura have known each other for years, but now with their evolving passionate relationship, things are changing. However, what if the trust you have is repeatedly broken? Do you take the time to trust again, or do you protect yourself from more heartbreak? In the end, it all comes down to the trust between them.
Relationships: Haruno Sakura/Hatake Kakashi
Comments: 497
Kudos: 661





	1. Something New

It was nearly midnight when Kakashi landed just outside the main gates of Konoha. Tenzo and Genma quietly touched down beside him. The light dusting of snow crunched beneath their feet as their walked towards their village. They had been absent from the village for almost five weeks—which was not a long mission, by any means, but it was long enough for him to miss his own bed.

It was late winter in Konoha, so it was cold out, but not quite freezing. Thankfully, Konoha didn’t get harsh winters like Yukigakure. Nevertheless, he could see his breath as a puff in front of him. Kakashi adjusted the red scarf around his neck, since the last thing he wanted was to catch a cold.

It had not been a hard mission—conducting reconnaissance on a temple of warrior monks near Kirigakure. It had been boring and straightforward, but now it was late and he was tired and just wanted to get clean and crawl into his own bed.

The three men walked through the village gates, shifting their ANBU masks to one side of their head, waving to the sentry guards on duty as they passed by. It was determined to be best practice to dress strictly as ANBU for all of Kakashi’s missions—even if they were lower rank missions. He was too discernible and so the additional mask was there to protect him from rogue-nin and the like who wanted to make a name for themselves by trying to kill the semi-retired Rokudaime.

Being that it was the middle of the week and halfway through winter, the village was quiet, which made it one of Kakashi’s most favourite times. People like to hibernate and stay in. Thinking of all the people safe at home in their beds, surrounded by their loved ones, made the him happy. This is what he fought for—and what he continues to fight for.

At 41, Kakashi was content with life. After he stepped down, Naruto had taken over the reins of being Hokage. This meant that the ex-leader was allowed to run missions again. Which is where he felt most useful.

He smiled and thought,  _ this is how it should be _ . He may not have the Sharingan anymore, but he was still a genius ninja and was one before he obtained that eye.

“Kakashi-senpai,” Tenzo called out, breaking him out of his musings. “We should drop off the mission report to Hokage-sama and then check in with the medical ward.” Tenzo was always one for following the proper procedures. It had taken quite an effort to get Tenzo to stop calling him Hokage-sama.

“Maa maa, Naruto-kun is at home in bed with his wife, so the report can wait until tomorrow morning. We’re all uninjured and we did what we were supposed to do, so I’m heading home for a good night’s rest.” The three men continued to walk through the town towards the shinobi housing sector. Kakashi waited for them to start complaining, which of course didn’t take long.

“Oi, Kakashi! Shizune will have my ass if we don’t check in.” Genma’s senbon shifting in his mouth as he protested.

“I’m sure you can find a way to placate Shizune, or at least distract her long enough to not notice that I’m not there,” Kakashi said with his eyes grinning. “See you guys later.” With a half-assed salute, he ‘poofed’ away from his friends.

Genma and Tenzo stood where they were left. They weren’t surprised with their friend. They both knew how much he hated any medical procedures, but they weren’t about to risk getting into trouble themselves, so they continued strolling towards the hospital that lay beyond the shinobi housing.

“We better head in and see whoever it is we need to check in with. Kakashi can fight his own battle with his own medic,” Genma said. Genma and Tenzo both knew that Sakura would likely track their errant partner down to make sure he was uninjured and healthy. She was known for chasing after Team 7 members with an iron fist when it comes to their health.

Tenzo nodded and continued down the empty street. After a short walk, they arrived at the hospital and were directed towards an office that was shared by Shizune and Sakura.

Genma knocked and entered when he heard a feminine voice saying ‘come in’. Genma looked disappointed when it was only Sakura in the office. She knew that Genma was trying to persuade Shizune to go out with him, although he has yet to have much luck. Genma was not known for being subtle with his advances—more like sexually explicit.

Sakura was looking up from her paperwork at the two ANBU-dressed men who walked into her office. “Genma, Tenzo, good evening. Are both of you just getting in from a mission now? Is there something I can help you with?”

They could tell that they had caught Sakura unaware. She looked a little tired, but they knew that she was one of the best medics in Konoha, so it didn’t surprise them she’d be pulling late hours.

“Hey, Sakura. Yah, we’re just in from a mission. We know that we have to check in with a medic before being released to go home. What are you still doing here?” Genma asked as he looked around the office.

Sakura guessed that he was looking for Shizune. Shizune had made a comment to her that Genma had been extra flirtatious of late, and Sakura knew that her senpai was as interested in the senbon-wielding man. “It was my turn for this shift. But Shizune will be here shortly. Was it just the two of you on this mission?” Sakura asked as she narrowed her eyes. She knew that both Genma and Tenzo were accomplished shinobi however, she also knew that they often performed missions in three- or four-man squads.

Both Genma and Tenzo looked around sheepishly, trying to come up with a good excuse for their missing partner. “Well, yes, we have a third in our squad, but as you can see, we’re here and uninjured. It really was an uneventful mission. Not a single kunai was thrown,” Tenzo said, trying to convince the medic that everything was fine. Which it truly had been, but Sakura was neurotic with post-mission checkups, especially about people she cared about.

Not falling for their excuses, she rose out of her chair and scrutinized them. “Who?” she demanded, as she tapped her fingers against her wooden desk.

“Kakashi,” Genma said, not having a problem passing blame on Kakashi’s absence onto the man himself. “But really Sakura, we’re fine.”

The tired medic dropped her head. Of course it had to be her ex-sensei. He was always troublesome when it came to hospital visits and checkups.

She raised her head slowly and eyed them critically. “Are you both fine? And just remember that if you lie to me now, I have the power to move your prostate exam up to next week.”

Both men stood a little straighter with the threat. Tenzo shyly spoke up first, “Besides my broken finger, I promise that I have no other injuries.” Tenzo held out his left hand. They had already reset it in the field, but it was swollen and ached a little.

Sakura shuffled her papers around on her desk to tidy it, before moving over to Tenzo. She took his hand and pushed her chakra around his finger. It took less than a minute to remove the swelling and finished the healing of the tender digit. She looked to Genma awaiting his answer.

“If you don’t mind, Pinkie, I’ll let Shizune look after me.” he said with a wink. “I’ll just wait right here for her,” he said as he got comfortable in a spare chair.

“That’s fine, Genma, just remember that she’s about to start her shift and that she’s not here to play naughty nurse to you,” she said nonchalantly. She looked to Tenzo, “All done Tenzo-senpai. You’re safe to go home and rest.” Tenzo wiped his nose clearing the suspicious drop that looked like blood and laughed awkwardly. Sakura knew that nearly all the shinobi she worked with had love-hate relationships with med-nins. They all thought they were sexy, but never wanted to visit them—especially if they needed medical attention. Obviously Tenzo and Genma both had naughty nurse vices.

Walking back to her desk, Sakura finished her notes and packed up her stuff. She felt Shizune’s chakra signature enter the hospital and was thankful that her office mate was always on time. Grabbing her portable med-kit, she continued past the jounins.

“Good night gentlemen, I’m off to see your delinquent partner.” She smiled as she left the room.

On her way down the hallway, Sakura saw Shizune. “Genma is in the office waiting for you. Have fun! And don’t do anything that I wouldn’t do!” the pink haired kohai teased.

“Sakura!” Shizune exclaimed, caught off guard that she would joke with her in such a way. “Wait! Where are you headed to in such a hurry?”

“Kakashi was also on Genma’s team, but refused to check in, so now I have to go chase him down,” Sakura griped.

“Haha, well as you said, ‘Have fun! And don’t do anything that I wouldn’t do’!” Shizune snickered as she continued to their shared office.

Sakura paused for a brief second, but then continued on her way. She knew what Shizune was hinting at. After a girls' night out a few months ago, where Sakura had unfortunately had a little too much to drink, she had admitted to Shizune that she found older men much more attractive than the boys from her own generation. Especially men in ANBU uniforms—since there was just something incredibly sexy about that skin-tight outfit. Kakashi was certainly included on that list of older men whom she found attractive, and her senpai had picked up on that.

But that was neither here nor there. She was fiercely protective of the men in her life, regardless of their poor opinion of the hospital procedures.

»-----«

Kakashi let out a sigh of satisfaction as he landed on his balcony off of his living room. He opened the patio doors and slipped inside. To his sensitive nose, the air smelled stale, dry and warm in his apartment, so he left the door open a crack to allow fresh air in. He went through his living room and bedroom, opening up more windows as he shed his pack and shoes.

He meticulously removed his mask, vest, arm and shin guards and placed them aside for cleaning, then he stripped down his skin-tight black uniform, throwing all of his dirty clothes in the hamper. Kakashi decided that a soak in the tub would be ideal, so that he could read while he relaxed.

With his book in hand, he walked to the bathroom and turned only the hot tap on, and let the tub fill up. He shifted towards the mirror to shave his face while the tub continued to fill.

His proficiency with sharp blades made quick work of the five-day scruff on his face. He wasn’t a fan of growing whiskers, especially while wearing a mask, but he didn’t always have the luxury of shaving while on missions.

Kakashi glanced at the tub and saw that the water was high enough and steaming hot. He turned off the taps and stepped in and winced.  _ Maybe a little too warm _ , he thought. His skin started turning pink, but he quickly adjusted to the scalding temperature as he sat down and laid back.

He had a small gash on his left thigh, which tingled in the hot water, but the heat felt great for his tired muscles and bruised ribs. He laid his head back against the cool tiles and allowed his body to melt into the water.

His team had run straight for two days from Kirigakure, because they had both the energy and they missed their own beds. They had only stopped briefly on their journey home, after Kakashi had made a rookie mistake. It had been raining wet snow, and as they were running through the treetops, he had slipped on a wet branch. His foot lost purchase on the branch as his momentum caught up to him, causing him to hit the tree limb, his chest first as he slipped towards the ground. A stray branch snagged him in the leg before he righted himself midair and continued to push forward. Thankfully, since he was bringing up the rear, his partners hadn’t seen the slip. Regardless, he called a halt for the group and quickly ate some food and stretched out his sore legs and arms. He took this time to wrap the bleeding cut on his leg. The other two seemed thankful for the break, even if it was brief.

The cause behind his lapse in concentration during their rush to get home was because his mind had been wandering to the comments that both Genma and Tenzo had made. After talking about women between the three men, the other two had turned the conversation to a more sensitive topic for Kakashi. It seemed that Sakura had become one of the most desirable kunoichi of Konoha, and many jounin sought her out for dates. Sure, it was obvious to Kakashi that she had matured over the years into a fine kunoichi, but it surprised him how many men were sweet on her. He had thought Genma and Tenzo were originally talking about men Sakura’s age, but Genma had laughingly corrected Kakashi and told him that men from his own generation were also interested in the pink haired kunoichi.

After a month of watching celibate monks with Tenzo and Genma and speaking at length about women, he thought it would be refreshing to seek some female company. He grinned to himself. He didn’t chase women the same way that Genma did—of course that was before the man started focusing his attention on Shizune. However, he wasn’t a recluse like Tenzo. He knew that Tenzo had had women in the past, but the former ANBU never advertised it.

Snapping out of his thoughts, he sunk a little further into the water and grabbed Icha Icha Tactics and flipped through to where he previously left off. He didn’t exactly fit in his bathtub, but it was more private than the hot springs.

After soaking for around ten minutes, the hot water lulled his body and mind, almost to where he almost didn’t feel the other chakra signature enter his apartment.  _ Almost _ .

»-----« 

Sakura briefly observed Kakashi’s apartment from a rooftop across the street.

She thought back to the first time she came to his apartment. It was sometime after she had obtained the rank of jounin, and Kakashi had gone back to working high-ranking solo missions, prior to becoming the Hokage. One time, he had come back to the village looking really banged up. He walked (or rather limped) through the main gates, checking in, when it was a random coincidence that Sakura was near the front gates and noticed the state that he was in.

He had done his best to brush off his injuries as nothing, but to the medic’s trained eye, she could tell that he desperately needed some healing. Eventually he gave in after her temper got the better of her, and they made their way to his place. By the time they had reached the entrance into his building, he didn't even have the energy to go up the two flights of stairs.

Sakura had ducked her head under his arm to help him up the stairs. She remembered thinking about how stubborn men were, but Kakashi typically outdid most men in all aspects of life—including being stubborn.

Their encounters continued like this over the years. Kakashi getting hurt and Sakura putting him back together. Surprisingly, when he spent time as the Rokudaime he still ended up getting injured since he would spar with anyone willing—which was usually Naruto or Sasuke and sometimes both of them at once. She shook her head at the memory. Only homicidal idiots would spar with both of them at once and think they would come out uninjured. Apparently Kakashi fell into this personality category.

Sakura knew that she and Kakashi had grown closer over the years, considering all the times they bumped into each other. They had even sought each other out for the occasional lunch or drink after work. Her feelings of respect and admiration for the man had changed over the years—into something more. She held a bit of a torch for the illustrious man. It wasn't the teenage crush like she experienced for Sasuke—it was different, but hard to explain. However, she would never act on it since she was sure that Kakashi harboured no such feelings for her. Plus, she wasn't sure if she wanted anything more than just a physical relationship with men at the moment—her chosen career kept her too busy to cater to a relationship.

Sakura shook her head once more, bringing her back to the present moment, and prepared herself once more to heal one of her (homicidal stubborn idiot) friends. She noticed that his living room light was on and his balcony door was slightly open.  _ He must still be awake _ , she thought.

Entering his place from the balcony, she pinpointed his chakra signature to his bathroom. His home smelt a little like stale air, but Kakashi’s underlying scent was still here. It was a scent that she had come to associate with him—masculine and woody with hints of sweat and steal. She quietly waited by the washroom door and not hearing anything she knocked.

“Kakashi?” she called out gently. She had stopped calling him sensei after the fourth war, and started calling him Hokage-sama, but he had cornered her one day and begged her to stop using such formal titles with him. He said that she was to call him just Kakashi and he would stop calling her Sakura-chan as often, since they had become more familiar with each other during his tenure as Hokage.

While Sakura knew that there were only so many non-personal things that he could do in the bathroom at this time of night, she had a task to perform and she felt duty-bound to check in on him. Plus, after working with her teammates for so long, she had seen them all in various states of dress and undress, that almost nothing could surprise her anymore. Men seem to underestimate the definition of ‘in good health’. She once chased Kakashi down because he had a shuriken stuck in his shoulder—and he had said he was fine then too.

"Kakashi, I'm coming in, so cover up anything you don't want me to see."

Sakura slowly opened the door and saw that the bathroom was filled with thick steam. Once her eyes had adjusted, she saw that Kakashi was lounging naked in the bathtub with his book just barely covering the lower half of his face. She could tell he was grinning by his eyes.

"Yo, Sakura-chan. How's it going?" he teased, his voice sounded half asleep and a little deeper than normal. 

She squeaked, blushed and quickly turned around, but didn’t leave.  _ So much for being fine seeing him in any state of dress, _ she thought to herself. He chuckled and studied his former student’s back. She was dressed in her white pants and sleeveless red qipao. Her pink hair had grown out, and now hung halfway down her back, as longer hair was much easier to tie back than shorter hair.

He could tell that she was shocked and annoyed to find him unabashedly naked, and her irritation with him was starting to show. He enjoyed getting her riled since it was usually so easy to get a rise out of her.

With her hands on her hips and staring daggers at the door she tried her best to forget that he was naked. “Why didn’t you check in with me or another med-nin like the rest of your team?” she demanded.

“If I didn’t know any better, I’d say that you were worried about me,” he continued teasingly.

Sakura huffed and ignored his observation, trying to be as professional as possible in this situation. “Idiot. Of course I was worried. Are you injured?”

“I am not injured, as you saw. Just a little tired. Nothing that a relaxing bath and a good night’s sleep can’t fix,” he said lazily.

Sakura snorted and said without thinking, "Sorry but I didn’t get a good look.” She paused and continued. “You really should have told me to wait in the living room until you were decent."

She heard the sloshing of water, and suddenly she felt his presence directly behind her. "You were the one who came into my bathroom. Why don’t you turn around and see for yourself that I am uninjured?" he taunted her in a deep voice. He had leaned his face down right beside her ear.

She squeaked again, and he chuckled, "I'm fine Sakura, just one or two bruises that will heal in a few days."

She turned her head to look at him—her green eyes large with surprise and tinted with desire. His face was so close to hers—his maskless face. She had seen him a few times without his mask, though never in large groups and never for long periods of time. And never this close.

He placed his wet hands on her hips to hold her in place. While he didn’t mind a bit of teasing, he wasn’t sure if she could handle the full effect of his naked body. He wasn’t sure if he could handle what her scent was already indicating—it had a new spice layered into her normal scent. It seems that she was a little turned on by him and it intrigued him.

She could feel the heat radiating off of his body. She blushed and nibbled on her lip. Since Sakura was here on business, she had to resist crossing any lines with him tonight—even if he was openly inviting and flirting with her. At least for now.

"Why don’t you go wait in the kitchen?" He rubbed his thumbs slowly over her hips. "I think there's some cherry ice cream in the freezer.” He pulled his head back to stand at full height behind her. With his warm hands still on her hips, he gently nudged her forward.

Sakura allowed herself to be distracted with the idea of ice cream. She grinned, "You better hurry if you want any.” She continued to smile as she left the steamy bathroom. She tried hard not to overthink what just happened.

The young medic wasn’t as naïve as many thought her to be. A shinobi’s lifestyle was one of uncertainty, opportunity and power. Everyone handled the stress of the job differently. Once missions were finished many shinobi and kunoichi alike sought a human connection and often through physical contact, mainly to remind themselves that they had survived another day, another mission. It wasn’t the first time that she’d been hit on by a patient. However, it was a first for Kakashi, and Sakura found it exceedingly tempting.

»-----« 

Kakashi stood naked in the bathroom for a brief moment before he turned around and pulled the plug in the tub. He wrapped a towel around his hips and grabbed his book, while he tried to organize his thoughts. He wasn’t overly surprised that he had teased and flirted with Sakura. He was still a man after all, and he still had needs. And she was a gorgeous woman standing in his bathroom while he was naked.

It didn’t help that Genma had been talking nonstop about his desire for Shizune, and with her only being a few years older than Sakura, his mind was having difficulties remembering the age gap between himself and his former student.

He ran a hand through his damp hair as he left the bathroom, sighing and trying to clear his mind.

On his way to his bedroom, Kakashi paused and looked towards the kitchen. Sakura was sitting on his counter swinging her feet. She had a smile on her face as she was eating his cherry ice cream right out of the container.

Kakashi shook his head as he continued into his room and dropped his towel. The cool air was helping him stow his thoughts about Sakura and their teasing conversation. It felt nice to have the breeze on his weary body. He grabbed some loose-fitting pants and pulled them on. He looked at his mask sitting on the top of his dresser and decided to wear it as well. He didn’t make it a frequent occurrence, but he was not a fan of wearing his mask in his own home. Even though she had seen his face before, he was feeling the need for a bit of privacy tonight. Especially since he was feeling mischievous after their chat in the washroom—which could lead to potential nose bleeds. 

About a year ago he had a cheek injury, and Sakura had been the one to heal it and obviously the mask had impeded her. It was the first time she had seen him without his mask. She tried not to make a big deal about it, and he appreciated that. However, he noticed the slight blush that coloured her cheeks as she healed him. 

Even though he was perplexed by what happened in the washroom, knowing that she found him attractive enough to blush in that encounter, perhaps he could take a page out of Genma’s book and just be playful and flirt harmlessly in her company tonight.

Sakura was still eating ice cream on his counter when he entered the kitchen. She glanced up, first noting his silvery hair which defied gravity despite being wet. He was wearing his mask but was shirtless, which was enough to make any woman’s blood pump just a little faster. To distract herself, she treated the ice cream on that spoon like it was the best thing in the world.

Kakashi walked up to her, watching her tongue lick the ice cream off the spoon. Rather than facing her, he leaned against the counter beside her, staring away from the kitchen. Even with her sitting on the counter, he was still a head taller than her.

"Sakura, is there any left for me?" he asked, his voice a little huskier than his usual timbre. The image of her tongue licking the spoon was creating shameless but wonderful thoughts in his head.

"Mmm hmmm, about half." She smiled and dipped in for another scoop. He reached over and took her wrist, pulled down his mask to his chin and slipped the spoon in his mouth.

"Mmmm just what I needed after the mission. There’s nothing like something sweet when you’re tired." His hand held her wrist as he slowly licked all the ice cream off the spoon.

Because of the blush rising on her cheeks again, Sakura didn’t turn to watch him. He was making her flustered with his actions tonight. He had teased her in the past as a student, but never as a woman.

"Kakashi, you know you're supposed to check in with medics after missions now. Why didn't you come in?"

He let go of her wrist, pulled up his mask and allowed her to scoop another spoonful of ice cream. She slipped this one into her mouth while she waited for his answer.

He paused before answering. "Sakura, you know I'm not a fan of hospitals. All the poking and prodding—which I hate. I'm fine. I just need to rest." Kakashi watched her out of the corner of his eye as she enjoyed her treat. She finished the spoon and dipped in for more.

She held it out for him. "For you." He reached for it with one hand and slipped his mask down with the other. Sliding the spoon into his mouth, his eyes followed her as she reached out with her other hand and touched his bicep, over his ANBU tattoo. His skin was still damp and warm from his bath. With glowing hands, she pushed her chakra into him. She closed her eyes as she checked him over. Turning his head he watched her concentrate on her task.

He had no visible injuries, but she could only see his upper body. She could tell he was mostly telling the truth when he had said that he was uninjured. However, he did have an injured rib which had yet to form a bruise on his skin, and a small cut on his thigh.

She hopped down from the counter and stood in front of him, putting the container of ice cream down beside him. He still had the spoon in his mouth when she put her hands on his ribs and begun to heal him. "How do you want me to heal your leg?" She was well aware of Kakashi’s ability to evade medical treatment, but she was doing her best to refrain from giving him any wiggle room.

"You could let nature take its course and leave it to heal on its own. It's not deep, and I already washed it so it won’t get infected. I know how to do a field dressing and basic first aid. It'll be fine," he said as convincingly as possible.

She continued to stand in front of him and gave him the 'I'm not buying what you're saying' look that she was famous for.

He pulled the spoon from his mouth and gave her his best Kakashi smirk, knowing that many found his smirk irresistible. "If you’re not satisfied with my answer, the only other options are you putting your hand down my pants—or I can drop them. Do you have a preference?" He locked both of his charcoal eyes on her face and waited for her reaction. It still thrilled her to see his mask-less face whenever he felt inclined to share. His cocky smirk was nearly as deadly as the rest of him.

Her face went beet red, and she lowered her eyes from his face. Unfortunately, she was eye level with his chest and nipples, so that didn’t help with her blushing. Nor did it help when she saw the light trail of silvery hair starting just below his belly button and disappearing into his pants. She knew exactly where that trail of hair ended. She focused on finishing healing his ribs, before letting him think he would get away without healing the cut on his thigh.

"Are you wearing anything under your pants?" she asked shyly. This was all new territory for her.

His head snapped down, and he stood staring at the top of her pink hair. He chuckled, "You know, I can’t remember if I put any on. Why don’t you take a peak and let me know?" he said audaciously. He knew that he was crossing some boundaries that shouldn’t be crossed, but he couldn’t help but provoke her. Like so many other men, he found it amusing to tease an attractive lady.

The soft glow emanating from her hand flickered then stopped. Apparently his ribs were fully healed. However, she didn't remove her hand from his side. It looked like she was debating his suggestion. He knew that her need to heal others and remove their scars often outweighed her own need to be comfortable, and while he enjoyed teasing her and making her squirm with some light flirting, his goal wasn't to rock the solid foundation of friendship that they shared. Even if he was tempted by her tonight.

To break the tension, he slipped his mask back into place and he reached over to the ice cream and put the lid back on and moved to put it in the freezer. His movements broke her physical contact with him and broke her out of her thoughts.

"No sense letting a good thing go to waste,” he said lightly.

His clean scent and warm body were definitely getting to her. There was no denying her attraction to Kakashi, but she enjoyed their friendship the way it stood—for now. His teasing comments were not especially new, but his suggestive edge to them was something she hadn’t experienced before with him.

Sakura quietly eyed him. His easy-going nature had always made her feel comfortable. But just looking at him, she knew that he was the epitome of men and shinobi alike. Tall, muscular, attractive, an incredibly handsome face (when she got to see it), even with the long scar that bisected his left eye—he was an elite, in all sense of the words. As dangerous as he was, she has never felt even an ounce of fear towards him.

As a child, she knew he would defend her and help her grow. But now as an adult, the lines seem greyed and tonight they'd blurred even more. She knew that he would gladly sacrifice his own life to protect his friends, but there was something else—another feeling that seemed to linger around him this evening. It was a feeling that made her slightly nervous to be around him.

Sakura was no virginal young woman anymore. At 27, she had had partners in the past, some better than others, but nothing recently. She could (and had) seen to her own needs more often than not, but there was nothing like the hot-blooded man standing before her. Regardless, Sakura was not about to let the sexually charged haze completely cloud her judgment.

Keeping her head bent and her eyes focused on their feet, she raised her hands to his abs, and physically kept him at arm’s length. For whose benefit, she wasn’t sure. She mustered her confidence and addressed him.

“Kakashi, as much as I’ve enjoyed our little adventure into sexual foreplay, I’m tired. And I’m sure you’re tired too.” She raised her head and eyes and stared at his face with confidence. “I will be back in the next few days to check on your leg. Hopefully, your clothing will be more accommodating next time.”

“Of course, Sakura,” he grinned.

As childish as it was, she didn’t want to leave him with the last words. He may be an elite ninja, but so was she. Besides that, she was still feeling confident.

“Next time you’re hurt or in need, just let me know. I’ll always give you a helping hand.” Her intended word play had the effect she wanted, but she wasn’t done with that. Rather than just dropping her hands as she moved away, she let them gently glide across his lower abdomen and across the light silvery hairs that trailed into his pants. Feeling him quiver under her fingers, she let her hand slide off completely.

In a swirl of pink petals she was gone, but her scent lingered. While her scent had changed little over the years, tonight he enjoyed the addition of spice that he could smell on her. 

He stood alone for a minute longer in his kitchen, processing the evening. Sakura hadn’t been outraged by his forwardness and flirting, and in fact had been aroused by it. It was a curious result and Kakashi was interested in seeing if he could stir it again.

»-----« 


	2. Chapter 2: Something Flirtatious

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much to my two wonderful beta's: YummyFoods and TipsyRaconteur! You keep me sane!
> 
> Happy Holidays ^_^

That night Kakashi was jolted awake by an enticing dream. Heart racing and covered in sweat, he blinked a few times, trying to drag his mind away from the sexual fantasy he dreamt about. He thought back to the erotic dream and he could have sworn that the other participant was a woman with bright emerald eyes.

_ It was all just a dream _ , Kakashi thought to himself, trying to calm his emotions.

Spending so much time with his male teammates, then coming home and having Sakura teasing and flirting with him in his own home must have been the catalyst for his sensual visions.  _ That must be it. It’s just been too long since I’ve been with a woman _ .

He flopped his head back onto his bed, still reeling from the vivid images.  _ But why Sakura? _ Kakashi wondered. He didn’t really have a particular type of woman that he preferred, besides unattached and unencumbered.

Part of him was confused why his dream had involved Sakura, and the other half of him wasn’t all that surprised. Ever since becoming Rokudaime, he had inadvertently spent more time with Sakura. He was in Konoha more often and it was easier for everyone to pinpoint his location—which included his typically nagging pink-haired medic.

Kakashi was not overly close to many women—only four to be exact: Anko (who slightly scared him), Kurenai (who would only ever be a friend to him because of his respect for Asuma), Shizune (who was potentially dating his closest guy friend Genma), and Sakura.

While he was still Hokage, sometimes he and Sakura would grab lunch together or were forced into the same tedious hospital functions. But it was always nice to see a familiar face, especially hers. He admired who Sakura had become. She had advanced in her own way, along her own path to where she was his equal. He admired his former student and everything she had accomplished since leaving his meager tutelage.

As a result of constantly working together, they had grown closer over the years. Especially when she tracked him down to heal him once he started taking missions again. He knew he could be a tough customer, but he was thankful she chased after him so tenaciously.

Kakashi looked towards his bedroom window and saw that it was still dark out and thought he should try to get a few more hours of sleep. He desperately needed sleep. He tried his best not to think about his dream. But something about those eyes in his dream had him thoroughly captivated. It kept him from falling back asleep until the early hours of the morning.

* * *

Kakashi stood in front of Naruto’s desk in the Hokage’s office.  _ He is up to something _ , Naruto thought.

It was 8:35am and the infamously late Copy-nin was turning in a mission report. Naruto glanced between the report and the man who stood before him.

“You’re here rather early, Kakashi. If I didn’t know any better, I’d figure you were an imposter. If you’re here early with a finished mission report, you must want something,” Naruto said dryly.

“Maa maa, Naruto-kun, I can be on time, you know. I was never late for anything important while I was Hokage,” Kakashi stated offhandedly.

“That’s because you had administrators making sure you were wherever you were supposed to be and on time.” Naruto paused as he glanced over the report. “Is there anything else to add outside of what you've stated here?”

“Besides the foolishness of Yamato breaking his finger against a tree while trying to swat at a squirrel—no. For being a warrior monk temple, they were rather peaceful. We saw no suspicious activity occurring while we were surveying them.” Kakashi looked thoughtful for a moment. “Whatever happened to having medics on teams? If we hadn’t reset his finger properly, he wouldn’t have been able to form accurate jutsu.”

Naruto had a good laugh while he pictured Yamato breaking his finger against a tree. “We don’t have enough good medics to staff the hospital and be off accompanying every mission. So we have to be picky. Why?” Naruto asked, looking at Kakashi.

Kakashi ignored Naruto’s question and moved around the desk to stand in front of the window. He remembered the days when he had been sequestered behind the desk. He didn’t miss it for a second.

“How’s Hinata?” Kakashi asked out of the blue. He knew she was pregnant, and would soon give birth to their second child.

Naruto’s eyes brightened. “Big! She’s due in about six weeks. I can’t believe it’s almost here.” The smile that shown across Naruto’s face was genuine and full of love. This life suited Naruto perfectly. It truly made him happy to see Naruto reaching his goals and having such a loving family. After everything he’s been through, the kid deserves it, Kakashi thought.

“She’s still craving the weirdest things too! I will admit that chocolate-covered pickles are surprisingly good. But she’s tired, and I think she’s just ready for this baby to be born,” Naruto continued. Kakashi could tell that he was thinking about Hinata. Naruto was easily distracted when it came to his family.

“Naruto?” Kakashi tried to break him out of his musing, changing the subject once again. “Do you have any missions that need me specifically for the next few weeks?”

“Yes, I have one B-Class mission that should only take you a few days, and then nothing planned after that. No one has requested you personally lately. They think you’re too expensive to afford you. I just keep sending you out on a lower paying missions. I figure that if I didn’t, you’d be moody if you were stuck here too long,” Naruto said absently as he flipped through the mission scrolls, looking for the one for his former sensei.

Kakashi thought this comment should bother him, but it didn’t. He had served for 30 years. He didn’t really care much about the pay since he still lived in his one-bedroom apartment and had never been one to spend his earnings frivolously. As long as he continued to be of service to his village—that's all that mattered to him.

“There are some things I’d like to take care of once I get back. I will require a few weeks in Konoha,” he said vaguely.

“That’s fine, Kakashi. I don’t think I've ever heard of you taking a vacation, so you’re probably overdue. Just let me know when you’re ready to head back out.” Naruto stared at his former teacher for a bit. There was something on his old sensei’s mind distracting him and Naruto could tell, but it seemed that he wasn’t ready to talk about it yet.

“Will do,” Kakashi said. He didn’t want to stick around in such a social place for too long; otherwise he’d likely get cornered into doing something he didn’t want to. “See you later, Naruto,” he said and transported himself out of Naruto’s office with a ‘poof’.

Just as the vapours dispersed, Yamato and Genma entered Naruto’s office. Kakashi had always been rather good at disappearing in a timely manner, avoiding most social necessities.

“Hokage-sama, we’re here to turn in the mission report,” Yamato said politely.

“You’re too late. Kakashi already turned in the mission report and he just left,” Naruto said blandly.

Yamato and Genma blinked in complete surprise. “Huh?” they both said in unison.

“I know. It was scary,” Naruto said, nodding his head at their blank expressions. “What’s worse is that he asked for a few weeks off. However, first, I have a short B-Class mission for the three of you, and after that Kakashi will be off. So either you guys can also have some time off like him, or I can find you other missions to fill in on while Kakashi’s off. It’s up to you.”

“Yes, Hokage-sama. We will read over the mission scroll and head out in the morning. As for when we get back, we um… can determine then if we will also take time off.” They were confounded and astounded by their partner’s actions. The three of them had been doing missions almost back to back since Kakashi left the Hokage position, and the old man hadn’t seemed to want to slow down anytime soon.

“Well, you know where to find me. Now if you’ll excuse me, I believe I have some diplomats to get ready for.” Naruto didn’t always enjoy the paper pushing, but it was a part of the job, and he loved his job.

Genma and Yamato bowed and left Naruto’s office, stupefied.

Genma was the first to come out of his stupor. “I guess I will go see if a pretty lady wants some breakfast,” Genma said grinning, thinking about Shizune.

Yamato just stood in the hallway scratching his head, confused about his teammate.

* * *

Sakura was walking down one of the many busy streets of Konoha after a morning of shopping when she noticed Kakashi's silver hair reaching above the heads of nearly everyone else. He was just a few storefronts ahead of her. With a set determination to deal with his injured leg, she marched up to him, grabbed his arm, and started pulling him towards the nearest store. She knew that she hadn't really startled him when she grabbed his arm, but he didn’t act any less surprised.

"Good morning, Sakura. Is there something that I can help you with?" Kakashi smiled down at her as she pulled him into the nearest store.

"We're dealing with your leg now. I don't enjoy leaving loose ends. And right now, you're a loose end. So we're going into the store here, and I will heal the cut on your leg," she stated unceremoniously.

Sakura continued to tug at his arm and pulled him into the store that they were in front of, but she neglected to notice which store front it was.

However, Kakashi hadn’t.

He knew exactly which store they had stopped in front of. As always, Kakashi enjoyed stopping in front of his favourite store, "Pink", that sold his favourite books and other adult items.  Sakura had seen him there before with his nose pressed against the glass, ogling the latest edition of Icha Icha Paradise with unseen drawings and sketches that Jiraiya drew himself. Kakashi couldn't help but stop and stare .

When the pair of them had pushed through the doors of the store, the bells at the top of the door alerted the clerk that new customers had come in. However, Sakura still hadn't noticed which store they had entered.

"Um, Sakura, perhaps you could heal my leg later?" Even Kakashi was distracted with being dragged into this store with the pretty but fiery medic.

"No, we're heading to the back to find a washroom for you to pull your pants down–" Finally, the determined medic noticed where they were. Her eyes widened at everything she was seeing. An assortment of sex toys lined one wall, while there were racks of leather and lacy outfits in the center of the floor.

Kakashi watched as Sakura's face went from pink to red to nearly purple. He chuckled at her embarrassment.

"Maybe we should leave this store and find someplace more appropriate?" Kakashi asked smoothly.

Just then, the bells above the door jingled again and Sakura watched in horror as Genma and a blushing Shizune entered the store.

Sakura didn't waste a second before she pulled Kakashi to the back of the store and away from their friends.

"Shit! I don't want Shizune to see me in here! Especially with you!" Sakura said in a harsh whisper.

"What? Are you embarrassed by your poor old teacher?" Kakashi teased her.

Sakura continued to drag them until they had reached the back of the store. She couldn't believe the conundrum she was in. She couldn't bear getting caught by Shizune while she was with Kakashi. Shizune would never drop this and would tease her mercilessly for it.

At last, Sakura noticed a change room that lined the back wall. Kakashi noticed the discounted toys on display beside the change rooms.

"Oh look! A discount section." He sidestepped her to look at the toys. "Hmm, a g-spot and clit vibrator for her, and a cock ring for him. That seems weighted towards her pleasure, but I could make that work—"

"Hush!" She shushed as she continued to flush red and push the tall man into the change room.

"Sit," she demanded while pointing to the little stool that was tucked into one corner of the cramped change room.

"What about my pants? Weren't you saying something about them earlier?" Kakashi taunted.

"Umm, yes. Slip your pants down just to the cut so I can heal it," Sakura said distractedly. She was still busy scoping out where Genma and Shizune were in the store. She hoped that they wouldn't be in there too long, and that they also wouldn't notice Sakura hiding with Kakashi in the change room. After last night, being so bold in his apartment, and now pulling him into this store, most of her courage had depleted.

"It's a good thing that I'm wearing boxers today," he said in his normal level of voice.

She smacked his arm. “Shhh! Not so loud! I don't want Genma or Shizune to hear you!"

"Sakura, they're ninja. They already know that we’re here," he said in a deadpan voice.

She closed her eyes briefly as if she was concentrating on something. Kakashi watched her emotions crossing her face. Then, he suddenly noticed a change in the ambience—her chakra signature completely disappeared. "Sakura, did you just hide your chakra?" Kakashi asked in disbelief.

"Shh! Don't say my name! They can hear us," she hushed him.

Suddenly, they could hear Genma and Shizune's voice nearby them.

"Come on, why don't you try it on? It'll be my treat if you like it," Genma said, trying to convince Shizune.

"I'm not sure, Genma.... You already paid for breakfast. Plus, it’s overpriced and there really isn't much fabric there," Shizune stammered.

"Don't worry about the price, darling. If you like it, it’ll be my treat for you," Genma said charmingly.

Sakura's eyes widened when she heard them speak. She hadn't realized that they were already moving on to buying sexy lingerie in their new relationship. She looked over to the man sharing the small change room with and she could tell that he was grinning like a fool.  _ Pervert _ , she mouthed at him. She pointed at his leg, indicating that she wanted to heal it.

Kakashi slipped his one pant leg down to where the cut was and sat back on the stool and waited for her to doctor him.

Sakura tried her best to concentrate on the task at hand, but between Kakashi's smug attitude and the possibility of getting caught in a small change room in an adult store seemed to divide her focus. It didn't help that he had exposed his muscular leg. She was just thankful that he was wearing boxers—and even more thankful that his shirt and vest covered his lap. She didn’t know how she’d react if she saw the outline of his privates.

Since there wasn't much space in the change room, and because Kakashi was so tall but lanky, Sakura had to stand directly between his legs.

She was a little worried that Genma or Shizune might see the glow of her healing chakra, so she placed her hands directly on his thigh. His skin was warm to the touch and covered in fine silvery hairs. Sakura ducked her head, trying to hide her blush as she all but caressed his thigh. Thankfully, the cut wasn't deep, and only had a hint of redness around the edges, so she was sure that it wouldn't take more than a few minutes to heal.

Kakashi studied Sakura as she healed him. Sure, he wasn't enthused if Genma or Shizune saw them in this position, but neither of them were doing anything improper. He found it amusing these circumstances embarrassed Sakura. On some level, Kakashi knew that he had been the one to arouse her last night. He didn't know what he wanted to do with that knowledge, but he would not lie to himself and try to convince himself that he didn't find her tempting. Genma had been right when he had spoken about Sakura's maturity and attractiveness.

It was some months ago when Kakashi had been out drinking with his friends and he had noticed a group of their juniors had ended up in the same bar. The group of juniors was sitting across the bar from him and his friends, and Kakashi was facing them. He had noticed Sakura right off the bat, as her back was to him, but she had on a rather alluring black lace top on. It made her already vibrant hair stand out even more. She was sitting beside a brown-haired man that he had only seen in passing, but couldn't remember his whole name—he knew it started with a 'T'. He had his arm slung over her shoulders and Sakura seemed to be pleased that it was there. The silver-haired nin speculated that they were dating.

Later that night, when Sakura's group had left and Kakashi was just finishing up his last drink, he went to the bar and paid, then exited the building.

He was astonished to see Sakura and her boyfriend making out in the alley beside the bar. Kakashi felt confused about what he saw. He wasn't sure if he should be embarrassed or pissed off that some guy was trying to force himself on his younger pupil. He stood still for a second, knowing that neither of them had noticed him. Before he could decide what to do about it, Sakura told the man that there were only so many things they could do right there at the moment, but how her apartment wasn't that far away. She had then proceeded to bring the man toward her apartment. The kunoichi had handled the situation with talent and expertise of a master seductress. It rocked Kakashi to his foundation over how his once-upon-a-time-student had become so efficient at handling men.

He had to admit to himself that that was the first time he had seen his former pupil as a woman and a sexual being.

"Almost done," Sakura breathed, breaking him out of his reflection.

Kakashi just hummed at her comment.

He could still hear Genma and Shizune, but they had moved away from the change rooms.

"It seems that our friends have moved to the front of the store. I don't think they will be here much longer," Kakashi whispered.

Sakura acknowledged him with a nod. The glowing stopped, and she pulled her hand off of his thigh. "Done. You can pull your pants up now."

Kakashi looked down at his thigh and saw a fully healed leg, with not even a hint of redness. While the cut hadn’t bothered him, he was glad to have it healed. He knew he was lucky to have such an attentive medic always chasing after him, and he may not always show his appreciation, but he was grateful.

He stood up slowly, making sure he invaded her personal space just enough to provoke her. Kakashi pulled up his pants slowly, watching for Sakura's reaction, and when he saw her blush, he bent his head down to her ear to speak.

"Thank you," he said, still trying to be quiet.

Sakura stuttered for a second. "You're welcome," she said under her breath.

She finally heard their friends paying for their purchase and leave the store with a chime of the doorbells. She breathed a sigh of relief and looked up at her patient. She was close enough to smell his masculine scent and feel the warmth radiating off of his body.

Sakura jumped a second later when there was a knock on the change room door.

"Excuse me, only one person per change room at a time, please," came the nervous voice of the store clerk from the other side of the door.

Her face went beet red again. She just wanted to get out of here as soon as possible—without being caught by someone who knew her.

Kakashi kept his eyes locked on the pink-haired lady before him and smirked. He pressed his lips together and hummed. "Mmmm… We're done here anyway," he said to the clerk in a low-pitched voice.

Sakura's jaw dropped at what Kakashi had implied to the store clerk. She smacked him in the stomach and swung the door open violently. Sakura didn't wait for her change room partner as she made her way past the variously shaped dildos, toys and bottles of lube and out of the store.

Kakashi picked up his bags, thanked the clerk and nonchalantly walked through the store.

As the door bells chimed when as he exited the store, he was surprised to see Sakura still waiting for him outside the shop. He casually walked up to her and waited for her to erupt her fury on him.

It was easy to tell that she was doing her best to keep her temper in check, but there was that minor twitch to her eye showing him that her restraint was potentially failing. Her fiery spirit brought a smile to his face—thankfully well concealed from her by his mask.

"Why would you insinuate something like that?" she asked him gratingly, clenching her fists.

"Was there something wrong with what I said?" Kakashi asked, trying to play dumb.

"You know exactly what you did. You know that you basically implied to him we were messing around in there. Which you know isn't true. You led him to believe otherwise," she accused.

"Oh? And is that a problem?" It tempted him to reach into his back pouch and pull out his book, but he thought that would likely push her anger over the edge.

"Of course it is!" she exclaimed, flushing a little.

"Why? Are you embarrassed about being caught with your hands down my pants?” he asked, probably a little louder than he should have.

Sakura was so red in the face now, Kakashi was worried that she would have an aneurism.

She looked around the street. Some people were staring, but most were going about their business. If she wasn’t careful, she’d cause a scene with the Rokudaime. "You're such an aggravating guy, Kakashi,” she said harshly and quietly. She knew it was hard to win a discussion with the Copy-Nin. She moved to walk away from him, but his hand on her shoulder stopped her.

She turned and looked at him, but he had moved close enough that they were chest to chest, and she had to crane her neck backwards to look at him in the face. His masked neck was at eye level to her, and she could see his Adam's Apple bob when he spoke.

“I would say sorry, but I think you liked it,” he said, just for her. His voice was gruff and rumbled in his chest, eliciting all sorts of odd feelings in her own body. “You seemed to like it last night, well enough.”

“Nothing happened last night,” she shot back.

He looked down at her, eyes meeting, and she noticed there was something contrived about the look in his charcoal eyes. She knew that he was teasing her, and that he enjoyed making her flustered and angry. However, before she could think on it further, he straightened and took a step back.

“Thanks for fixing me up, Sakura,” he said in his typical cheery voice. The bags he was carrying rustled as he began to walk away. “I’ll see you in a few days when I’m back from the next mission.”

Sakura stood dumbstruck, trying to remember what she was doing before her encounter with Kakashi.

His ability to confound her consistently tried her patience. Between the previous night and now, Sakura was bewildered by his flirty actions.

Half of her hoped that he thought she was attractive. However, the more realistic side of her thought that was entirely unlikely. She was probably making more of it, since she was attracted to him. The past 12 hours had only intensified her attraction to him. Which only confused her more, because what changed for him? She wondered, what spurred his flirtatious actions towards her?

She wasn’t really the type of girl to need girl-time with someone, but she needed a second opinion. For many typical things, she would turn to Ino, but even though Ino was ‘settled’ into married life, she was still the village's largest gossip. Sakura needed any discussion of this topic to stay confidential—so she could only think of one person who she could talk to: Shizune. She already knew that Sakura held a small torch for the Rokudaime—but after she saw her with Genma this morning, she was a little nervous about approaching the senior medic. However, at least she would be discreet.

Regardless, Sakura would see Shizune tonight at shift change.

* * *

Sakura went through the rest of her day feeling off.

She had finished her shopping and tidying at home, but she felt unsettled because of her interactions with Kakashi.

The man was notoriously a lifelong bachelor. From time to time, she had seen him with women hanging around him at bars before, but he usually hadn’t seemed interested. She had never caught him in the act—which made him the polar opposite to his friend, Genma. She had seen Genma with women on his lap, making out as if they were someplace private, rather than the overly public bar. But that was just normal for the senbon-wielding man.

However, Sakura had never seen Kakashi really flirt. Maybe he just had an itch to scratch, and she was the first woman that he came across. Maybe he didn't even realize that he was flirting with her.

These thoughts continued to plague her for the rest of the day.

Her own feelings had developed sometime soon after the Fourth Shinobi War. It was nearly unnoticeable at first. It always started with little things—she’d start smiling when he’d entered the room, or she’d lightened when he commented on her hard work at the hospital while he was the Rokudaime. She’d noticed how good looking he was regardless of the stodgy Hokage clothing—even more so when he once again donned the ANBU uniform.

But she pushed her feelings down and away over the years, always coming to the conclusion that it was nothing and that nothing would ever come from her liking him from afar.

Sakura shook her head, trying to dislodge the rampant thoughts streaming through her mind. It was time for her to get ready for her shift, and hopefully it would be a busy one to help keep her mind occupied. She still thought it would be best to seek advice from Shizune, however, she would have to wait until the end of her shift to speak with her.

* * *

Sakura reached her hand around to the back of her neck, clenching and massaging the tight muscles there. It had thankfully been a busy shift. Now the tired medic sat at her desk catching up on all the paperwork she missed while the chaos ensued throughout her shift. She had about an hour until her shift change with Shizune, and she was nervous.

High-caliber ninja like Kakashi, Genma, Shizune and herself can easily detect other ninja within a certain proximity. So earlier that day, when she had panicked and hid her aura from her two friends, she knew that her reaction had been ridiculous. She had been sure that her friends had immediately recognized their signatures. But she freaked out—granted it wasn’t one of her finer moments. However, it was a common courtesy for ninja to not discuss everything they came across when it concerned their ninja friends. Except Ino, who was a known gossip queen.

In a village filled with the most observant type of people it was difficult to hide everything. At the same time the village was filled with the most secretive people as well—it was a direct contradiction. It made the day-to-day events tricky to handle. So why would Kakashi make an already awkward situation worse by teasing her publicly?

“Sakura?” Shizune called out quietly. Sakura focused her eyes to look at her senpai, who was standing directly in front of her. She looked at the clock and back to her friend before her. The hour had come and gone while she was busy having her inner debate.

“Hi. Sorry. My mind was someplace else. I've just got to finish up this paperwork,” she said distractedly. “Wait, Shizune, can we chat?” The older woman paused before she reached her desk, a light blush gracing her cheeks.

The dark-haired medic looked sheepish. It wasn’t Sakura’s goal to make her feel uncomfortable by touching on what happened this morning, but she needed a second opinion about Kakashi. Shizune knew the elusive man better than herself, and she hoped that her senpai might have some insight on the situation and offer some advice.

“It’s about Kakashi. He’s acting… different.” She paused as she thought about how to continue. “And I’m not exactly sure what to do,” she said nervously.

Sakura explained how the previous evening went, and how this morning’s events proceeded—while leaving out her witnessing Shizune’s outing with Genma.

“Honestly Sakura, he sounds like a man going after something he wants. I know you’re attracted to him, so why are you hesitating?” her office mate questioned her curiously.

“I’m not sure I understand how this all began. I’m not even sure what this is. I don’t understand what changed for Kakashi to suddenly start flirting with me.” 

“Well, look at how you've been acting—walking into his bathroom, late at night. Feeling him up in his kitchen.” Shizune ignored Sakura's protesting when she said it was healing him and not feeling him up. “And then pulling him into a porn shop, and stuffing both of you into a tiny change room, then putting your hands down his pants. What did you expect? Don’t be so naïve,” Shizune scoffed. She wasn’t trying to sound mean, just blunt. It sounded like her senpai was a little on the frustrated side. She turned to the younger pink-haired medic and her features softened at Sakura’s blank stare.

She gentled her voice as she spoke next. “Sakura, it’s obvious that you've changed over the years, and I guess someone brought it to Kakashi’s attention or he figured it out for himself. He might be a guy, but he’s not blind or stupid. And it sounds like he’s taking you up on what you’re offering. You’ve always kind of been there for him, and maybe he’s finally realized it. Maybe he’s finally decided to further the Hatake clan.”

“Wait, what?”

Shizune didn’t think she had ever seen Sakura’s eyes so wide. Shizune grinned at the younger medic in a teasing manner as she tried to regain her composure.

“Fine, I’ll get knocked up by Kakashi, if you get knocked up by Genma. Does that work for you?” Sakura retaliated.

Shizune turned away quickly, but Sakura still caught the blush spreading across her cheeks.

“Go home Sakura.” Shizune nudged her office mate. “I think you've finally lost it.”

Sakura laughed. "So you can dish it out, but you can't take it?" Sakura started to pack up her things before she left for the night. "I guess I can give it a shot. But I'm not sure how to go about it though. This is all new territory with Kakashi."

"Well, you both have rather dominant personalities, so from my perspective, it will be hilarious to watch. But just be you. That's what he's attracted to in the first place."

Sakura had finished organizing the things on her desk before her departure. "I guess that's all I can really do. Thanks Shizune." The pink haired medic walked to the door of their office. "Let’s grab drinks sometime soon. I want to hear your opinion, and if the rumours are true about how good Genma's mouth is." Sakura laughed but didn't wait for a response from her friend, but she's sure she heard the thud of a book or stapler hit the wall where she was just standing.

* * *

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you have enjoyed my story, please consider leaving a kind comment. They really do make my day and they help me write more!


	3. Chapter 3: Something Crumbling

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you to my amazing beta, TipsyRaconteur! Without you I would have never gotten as far as I have with this story!
> 
> WARNING! ANGSTY CHAPTER AHEAD! Triggers: Depression, PTSD,Injuries, Blood

Sakura headed in for her 6 o'clock shift at the hospital, and as usual, she was early. She liked the time to settle in, drop off her stuff and check over any notes and papers that might have been left on her desk while she was away. Afterwards, she would go visit her patients and check on their progress. This was her typical day at work. She enjoyed the routine that the hospital provided as much as the rush from the adventure that missions gave. It was a good balance for her.

However, tonight she felt that something was off and would be different. She hadn't been in her office long before she started to hear a commotion in the hall outside. Sakura poked her head out her office and saw nurses and doctors alike, briskly moving towards the emergency ward.

"What's happening?" Sakura asked a nurse who was dashing by.

"A team came back and two are critical and the other is causing problems. Sorry, I have to get back there." The nurse excused herself.

As one of the top medics in the hospital, she decided to see if she could be helpful. She had a terrible feeling about this. Sakura quickly followed the trail of nurses and staff making her way to where the chaos originated. She could hear more and more shouting the closer she got. Doctors and nurses calling for IV blood, medications, personnel and such, to save the people who needed saving.

Sakura could hear Tsunade's booming voice calling out directions as she worked on someone. She followed her shishou's voice to the center of the chaos.

When Sakura turned down the hall towards the observation deck, she came across what she had always feared the most.

Kakashi was trying to push his way into the operating room and away from the security guard blocking him. However, he wasn't having much luck since he barely had the strength to stand. His ANBU uniform was torn in places and coated in blood—he looked awful. Her heart immediately constricted at the sight.

Here was not the cocky man from just a few days ago who had flirted so easily with her while he stood naked in his bathroom or taunting her at the porn shop. This man before her was broken. After years of traumatic experiences, torture and loss, it was not surprising he had reverted to a shaken and demoralized shell of a man before her.

Sakura quickly walked to the pair of men and tried to soothe the scene. "Good evening Tanaka-san. Please allow me to help the Rokudaime-sama." She said trying to reassure the guard that she would take care of the problematic shinobi. Even with a brief glance, she could tell that Kakashi was in bad emotional shape.

"He's all yours, Sakura-sensei." The guard knew that Sakura could handle herself, so he took his leave without another word.

Kakashi's fighting had weakened considerably once he had heard Sakura's voice. She watched as he slumped against the wall. He had no chakra or strength left to keep him upright, but his eyes seemed both a little desperate but drained at the same time. He looked defeated, and it broke Sakura's heart to see him in such a state.

"Kakashi—" she started and reached out to touch his shoulder to bring some semblance of comfort to him.

He looked up at her. "Please help them," he pleaded in despair. His charcoal eyes bloodshot from exhaustion.

Sakura nodded her head. "I will go check in on your team and I'll come back and let you know what's happening. But please stay here and don't follow me. I will be back in a few minutes," she reassured him.

Without another word, he slid to the floor sitting beside his discarded ANBU hound mask and kept his head down, waiting for Sakura to fulfill her promise. She wanted to check him to see if he was injured, but she knew that he wouldn't allow it until she had news about his team.

Sakura took one last glance at Kakashi before going through the 'Staff Only' doors that lead her to operating rooms. Thankfully, she saw Tsunade coming out of one room already removing the surgical clothes.

"Tsunade-sama!" Sakura called, as she immediately went up to her.

"Ahh, Sakura. What a mess, but at least there's a happy ending. If you've come to help, you're too late. We're done and the patients are being moved to ICU," Tsunade commented.

"That's good to hear. How serious were his teammates? Kakashi is waiting in the hall for an update." Sakura paused, trying to figure out how to report on Kakashi's own condition. "He's a mess. I believe he's having a PTSD episode, since it's his teammates are the ones that are being hospitalized and not him," Sakura reported.

Tsunade hummed. "Yes, I can see how Kakashi would react like that. But you can tell him that Genma will be fine. I just finished closing all the major lacerations that would have caused him to hemorrhage had he not made it to the hospital in time. Besides that, he had a few minor broken bones, and some other minor lacerations. After a couple days' rest here, he'll be okay to go home. As for Tenzo, he was in better shape than Genma. He had a concussion and a head wound which as you know bleeds copiously. He is already in ICU. Because of Kakashi, they will both be fine." Tsunade paused after her summary. "What do you plan on doing about Kakashi? Is he injured?"

"I wasn't able to check, but I don't believe he has any major physical injuries. However, he is covered in their blood, his chakra is depleted and he is physically spent. Mentally, he's unstable. I think it would be best to remain under watch, but we both know he won't easily agree, especially if we try to force him to stay here." Sakura paused, trying to think of a solution. "I worry about someone seeing and judging how debilitated the Rokudaime is behaving. I don't want anyone to think he's anything else but strong and capable. I believe the best solution is for someone to monitor him overnight, outside of the hospital," Sakura suggested. Sakura wanted to volunteer herself for this, but she wanted defer to Tsunade's opinion so it wasn't seen as preferential treatment.

"I concur. I believe you would be best to monitor him. He won't be such a pain in the ass with you as he would be with any other nurse or medic." Tsunade sighed. "I'll call in Ino to cover your shift. Go, do what you can for him."

"Yes Tsunade-sama. Thank you." Sakura hurried back to Kakashi. She didn't trust him to remain placid for a long period.

As Sakura opened the doors that lead to the hallway where she had left Kakashi, she saw his head jerk up.

Sakura crouched in front of him and looked him in the eyes. "Kakashi, they're both going to be fine. You got them here in time. They will spend a few days recovering here and then will be released from the hospital." She knew that Kakashi was relieved to hear that his team would be okay, but as he heard her report, most of the strain left his body as his adrenaline ran out.

"Thank you." He whispered, but he didn't move to get up.

"Come on Kakashi. Let's get you out of here and into some clean clothes. Let me help you up." Sakura reached down and pulled him up. "Hang on, we're going to teleport." She put both her hands on his arms and took a step closer to him. He kept his head bowed but allowed her to do whatever she wanted.

He thought she would take him to her apartment, but after the swirl of sakura petals dissipated, he recognized his own home. It surprised him that she had preemptively marked his apartment without his knowledge. He wasn't angry—quite the opposite. He was thankful that there was someone in his life who cared enough to think ahead like this.

Sakura had the good grace to blush in embarrassment for taking the liberty of marking Kakashi's apartment. "I marked yours when I marked the rest of Team 7, years ago, in case of emergency," Sakura laughed shyly. To cover up her embarrassment, she continued talking. "Why don't you shower and change into clean clothes. If you're okay with it, I'd like you to spend the night with me."

Kakashi's head snapped up with wide eyes with the wording of her request. Apparently Sakura didn't catch on to what she said fast enough.

With his intense and surprised stare, she realized what she said and went bright red again. "At my apartment! Not with me! As an outpatient!" she tried to clarify, stammering.

Kakashi would have laughed at her embarrassment had he the energy or the mood, but only nodded and then turned to walk towards the bathroom. Kakashi wasn't a fan of the word patient, but he knew that he would lose any argument and he was too exhausted to come up with a good one.

Sakura was still beet red as she watched him walk away.

She had seen him regress to this state a time or two before. After the first time she had seen him like this, she had asked Tsunade if she could see his file the following day. Tsunade was Hokage at the time, so she could get Sakura his full file and not just the abridged version. It had taken Sakura two full nights to read it over.

It seemed unreal to her what Kakashi had been through. Losing both of his parents so early, then starting missions so young, being pushed into the third shinobi war, losing his teammates, classmates, and then joining the oppressive ranks of ANBU, all to perform his national service.

Carrying out his duty to the village unfortunately meant being forced to kill children and adults alike, while he was still a child himself. His generation has had problems throughout their adult lives trying to cope with and conform to society. In which they have mostly failed. Especially someone like Kakashi who was never treated as a child, but as a weapon that the village could use. Sakura understood that that was the shinobi culture—she had wanted a similar lifestyle for herself. However, the hundreds of pages recounting all the abuses he had experienced and endured throughout missions, torture sessions and wars—it devastating to her.

It's no wonder he hated hospitals. It's no wonder why he couldn't handle a trauma like this. It's no wonder why he was as broken as he was.

There was probably no way to bring him long lasting peace, but at least she could be there for him this time—take care of him and make sure he knew he wasn't alone.

* * *

Kakashi stripped off his vest, shin and arm guards, dropping them on the floor, and then he removed his tattered ANBU uniform, took what he needed out of the pockets and threw the rest in the garbage. He had no desire to keep any clothes that were soaked in his friends' blood. It would be like a constant reminder of this fucked up mission and his friends getting hurt.

He didn't bother with looking in the mirror because he knew he was a mess. He turned on the shower to scalding hot. He wanted to cleanse and purge himself of this mission.

It was a B-ranked mission. Retrieve stolen goods and get out. Simple. Easy.

However, something went horribly wrong along the way. There was another group of rogue-nin who were after the same item. Neither group had been expecting a fight. Mistakes were made, injuries happened and all in less than 3 minutes. Kakashi supposed that his team had the best possible outcome for the mission, since they had left the scene of the battle alive—but it was too close. Two of the rogue-nin didn't leave the scene of the skirmish, and it was unlikely the third rogue-nin was still alive now.

Kakashi never had much of a taste for needless killing. The only reason he ended the two shinobis' lives was to protect his friends. He would do anything to protect his precious people. That was his way of the ninja. Nevertheless, he was disturbed by the events of the day.

He stepped into the shower with his eyes closed, standing under the hot spray as long as he could manage it before the water became too painful. Stepping back, he opened his eyes and turned down the heat—he could still see blood pooling in the bathtub's bottom. Kakashi hung his head—partially in exhaustion and partially in guilt. He grabbed the nail brush and started to scrub his hands and arms.

Earlier, after slinging an unconscious Tenzo over one shoulder and having Genma toss an arm over his other shoulder, he flash-stepped as close to Konoha as his chakra would allow. He then ran the rest of the way as fast as he could. He knew that he didn't have long before it would be too late for his friends.

Thinking back to every time one of his teammates was injured while Kakashi was present—regardless of whether or not Kakashi could have prevented it—deeply affected him. In the past, when similar incidents had occurred, it unsettled his nerves for several days and sometimes weeks afterwards.

Years ago, he had heard medics whisper "PTSD" outside his hospital room when he had been forced to stay there. He knew he had PTSD, combat neurosis, battle fatigue or whatever people wanted to call it now. He'd had it most of his life. And he was sure he had more issues other than just PTSD. He also knew that because of his lifestyle, he'd probably experience consequences for the rest of his life.

With previous episodes it took about a week of hiding away from the world until he could usually stabilize himself, and brush aside the trauma he had sustained, so he could get back to the day to day routine.

But this time, Sakura had come to him, told him that his friends were alive because of his quick actions. Kakashi believed her because he trusted her. He still felt like shit, physically and mentally, but he didn't feel as bleak as he had in the past.

While Kakashi showered and scrubbed his body nearly raw, he finally noticed that he had a wound on his arm that was still openly bleeding. Sighing, he ignored it for now, grabbed his bar of soap, lathered it, and washed his whole body, hair and all. He rinsed off and washed himself twice more until he could no longer stand being in the shower. He turned off the water and got out. He was feeling overly vulnerable being naked in the shower—even in his own home.

He stood in front of the mirror and looked at himself for a moment. The weariness shone not only on his face, but on his whole body—half-closed eyes, slumped shoulders and limbs that seemed to shake under his own body weight. Adding to that, his whole body looked badly beaten. Beside the large gash on his arm, he was covered with small bruises and scrapes from head to toe. Once again he was a well-used tool for his precious village.

He quickly bandaged his arm, slung the towel around his waist and left the bathroom. While he just wanted to crawl into bed, he felt compelled to do as Sakura requested. His method of dealing with his trauma has never worked in the past, so he went with Sakura without causing a fuss. _It was worth a shot,_ he thought.

Kakashi entered his bedroom quietly, dropped his towel and threw on his sleeveless shirt with attached mask, a pair of loose-fitting pants and sweater. He grabbed his backup mission bag, which was ready at a moment's notice for short-term missions. He removed most of the weapons—although not all since he would feel too defenseless without a few kunai—grabbed another set of shirts, pants, masks, socks and a pair of shoes and stuffed them into the bag. He picked up his Icha Icha Paradise and carefully placed it in the bag as well. He did not know how long Sakura would require him to stay with her, but he figured he could do laundry there or come back here for more supplies, if need be.

Kakashi kept his mask up, even though Sakura has seen it all before, as it gave him a bit of privacy while his emotions were as unsettled as they were. He still felt too vulnerable after everything that happened.

He thought he should feel odd about going to spend time with Sakura, but he didn't. She was doing what she thought was best for him and he would trust her in this.

* * *

It wasn't long before Sakura heard the shower turn off. She had moved to the small living room to wait for him on his couch. She understood how much he enjoyed his privacy, and how much she was infringing upon it. But she didn't feel comfortable leaving him alone right now. She thought her place could be a bit of a refuge for Kakashi, since it was unlikely anything at her place could trigger a relapse. She still wanted to check to see if he was injured in any way—and she would not take no for an answer.

Kakashi appeared in his living room in bare feet but dressed and carrying a small bag. Sakura could already tell that he was calmer after his shower. She knew how sensitive his sense of smell was, and to be covered in your friend's blood must have been horrendous for him. He moved to stand before her and dropped the bag at their feet.

Sakura slowly stood up. "Kakashi, do you have any injuries that I can help you with?" She treated him as a frightened pup that could bolt and hide at any point. She wasn't sure if he'd stay around long enough to get treatment or go hide from the world. She had hoped that she wouldn't have to fight him tonight on this.

Saying nothing, he slipped his arm out of his baggy sweater and presented it to her. He still had on his sleeveless shirt and attached mask, so she couldn't see all the other small bruises and scrapes peppering his torso. Sakura noticed that he had a sizable laceration running down his arm from bicep to forearm that was poorly wrapped. It was deep enough that it was quickly bleeding through the clean bandages he had put on after his shower. Sakura also saw that his hands looked as if he had rubbed them raw.

Sakura reached forward with both hands and cradled his arm in one hand, while the other hovered above the cut to heal it. Carefully, Sakura pushed her chakra in and around the wound with the hand on top while her other hand sent small pulses throughout his body to deal with his other untold injuries. She took her time with him using a lot of her available chakra, making sure that she left pockets of her chakra throughout his body that would release over the next few hours to heal all of his scrapes, bruises and soreness that he had. She also felt the beginnings of a headache forming because of his chakra depletion—Sakura guided more chakra to his head to stop any ill effects of overuse. It was more difficult to push her chakra this way, but she didn't think he'd be willing to show her more of himself right then.

She watched Kakashi from the corner of her eyes as his cut healed and the rest of his body began to relax under her care. He had started to gently brush his fingers over her arm that was supporting his. Sakura knew that he meant it as a gesture of thanks, since he didn't have the energy to do much else, and she took it as that—she smiled while she continued to concentrate on healing him.

Sakura spent almost 15 minutes quietly holding on to his arm, and she could tell that he was nearly ready to succumb to exhaustion by the time she finished. She removed the bloodstained bandages to reveal perfectly healed skin underneath.

"Kakashi, I've finished healing your arm. Do you have everything you need before we head over to my place?" Sakura asked softly.

He reached down and grabbed his pack and nodded.

Sakura took his arms again in her hands, stepped closer to him, and they transported into Sakura's living room. Again, Sakura didn't want to infringe on Kakashi's personal space any longer than necessary tonight because of his uneasiness, so she let go of his arm and walked to the kitchen.

"Make yourself at home. I will go put together something for a late dinner," she said.

Kakashi had been in her apartment a few times over the years, and next to nothing had changed. It was a simple apartment, decorated just enough that Kakashi could tell that it was a woman that lived here. It was spotless and organized, very much like her office. Except for her coffee table—which was covered in medical books and notebooks strewn with her annotations. He knew that Sakura was diligent with her work, but Kakashi thought it was a strong possibility that she had no life outside of work.

He put his bag at the end of the couch and sat down. He really didn't know what to do with himself. He was so tired, but he knew eating something would help him sleep better. Kakashi reached for his fallback plan whenever he was unsure what he should do: read Icha Icha Paradise.

He heard the whistle of the kettle, and a moment after that Sakura appeared. "Here's a cup of tea for you. Dinner will be ready in about 20 minutes." She smiled and went back into the kitchen.

She wasn't trying to be rude or awkward; she was being as professional as she could be, given the circumstances. She knew that he was used to doing things his own way, which included him being a bit of a loner in these types of situations. All she could do at this point was respect his privacy and give him some space.

Kakashi was grateful for the space she was giving him. He really didn't know what to say to her. He wasn't well known for his small talk capabilities.

He could hear her cooking in the kitchen and it wasn't too long afterwards that he could smell dinner too. It smelled inviting.

Kakashi picked up the cup of tea that she brought out to him and took a sip. It felt good to have something warm in his stomach. Book in one hand; tea in the other, Kakashi began to settle. He only got a few pages in when Sakura called out to him.

"Dinner is ready."

With tea in hand, he stood up and made his way into the kitchen. She had her back to him, filling two small bowls for them.

"It's nothing special, but it should fill us up well enough. A simple chicken and vegetable stir-fry over rice. Hopefully, you don't mind the simplicity of it." She placed a bowl in front of him. "You can start with that. I made lots, so you can have as much as you'd like. I'll be right back." Sakura left him to eat alone in the kitchen. He knew she was giving him space to eat without his mask.

Sakura went into her room and stripped her bed and got clean sheets and remade it. She figured Kakashi would be more comfortable there, since he was too tall to fit on her couch. She tidied up her room so he wouldn't come across any of her underwear or anything else overly personal.

Once she finished in her bedroom, she went back out into the kitchen. "Kakashi, I've changed the sheets so you can have the bedroom. The couch is too small for your frame, and you need a good night's sleep. Please don't fight with me on that," Sakura said with a gentle authority. She could tell he was about to object, but in the end, she guessed he changed his mind because he said nothing.

He had finished his bowl of stir-fry and waited for Sakura to finish hers. "Thank you. For dinner. And everything else," he responded. It was the least he could say after her attentiveness this evening.

"Of course, Kakashi. I will always help you with whatever you need." She smiled at him. "There's more if you'd like."

He shook his head. He was filled well enough for tonight. He waited until she finished eating—which didn't take long. Sakura moved to clean up after their dinner and packed up the leftovers.

"I've packaged them up into portion-sized meals, so all you have to do is grab one and reheat it in the microwave if you get hungry later. Also, you're welcome to have anything else in the fridge—which I'm afraid isn't much since I haven't gotten groceries in a few days. But I'll run out tomorrow and pick up some stuff." She said as she moved efficiently around her kitchen to clean up the mess from dinner.

"Now that that's done, I'm going to do some reading and research in the living room. Feel free to join me or head to bed if you're tired." Sakura took her unfinished cup of tea into the living room and sat down on her couch. Kakashi stood and followed her and joined her on the far side of the couch. His body was exhausted but his mind still hadn't turned off.

Out of the corner of his eye, he watched her as she read her medical books and scribbled notes about whatever she was researching. She worked diligently for what seemed like hours. Kakashi went back and forth between watching her stealthily and staring at his own book—although he didn't have the energy to read it. He was trying to stop his brain from thinking.

A few times Sakura got up to get more tea or change into more comfortable clothes or brush her teeth. She didn't seem overly fidgety tonight; this just seemed to be a typical night for her.

It made him think of her life, and all that she had accomplished so far. Her skills and capabilities were on-par with Tsunade—a legendary Sannin, and a retired Hokage. He hoped that she was proud of her great achievements—she had come so far since her genin years. But unlike the rest of her close friends, she spent most of her free time alone. Naruto and Hinata were married with one child already and another on the way; Ino and Sai were also married and also had a child; Shikamaru and Temari were likewise married with a child. Most of her generation were pairing up and settling down—but not Sakura.

He wondered whatever happened with her childhood crush, Sasuke. After he had returned from his years of wandering, Kakashi thought Sakura would have resumed her chase of him; however, that never developed. Kakashi had heard the rumors that the last Uchiha was in a relationship with a civilian, and had been for a few years, but he was elusive and never talked about his personal life in front of his former sensei.

But what about Sakura? Kakashi wondered. He looked over once again at her, and found that she had finally fallen asleep with a book in her hands, slumped into the corner of the couch. He figured that position would probably give her a sore neck in the morning.

Kakashi carefully got up, took the book out of her hands, added it to the collection on her coffee table, and gently repositioned Sakura to lie on the couch. He threw the blanket that she had brought out earlier for herself over her and sat down on the floor in front of her.

He hadn't consciously been waiting for her to fall asleep before being ready for sleep himself, but he was at last feeling tired. Kakashi grabbed the other smaller throw blanket and covered himself with it.

Kakashi sat, like a loyal dog in front of her. He knew that she didn't need protecting; she didn't need him guarding her, but he couldn't help himself. It was his conditioning.

He sagged down a little to rest his head against the edge of the couch and let himself finally fall asleep.

* * *

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you like my story, please leave a review! They really do make my day and they encourage me to write more.
> 
> Thank you!


	4. Something Breaking

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you to my amazing beta, TipsyRaconteur! Without you I would have never gotten as far as I have with this story!
> 
> WARNING! ANGSTY CHAPTER AHEAD! Triggers: Depression, PTSD,Injuries, Blood

Kakashi was jolted awake by a feminine arm gently coming to rest across his collarbones. A warm breath puffed at the back of his neck, which sent a shiver down his spine. His eyes momentarily widened, and he automatically reached for something to use as a weapon, since he didn't immediately recognize where he was. It wasn't until Sakura's scent enveloped him that his scattered nerves calmed.

It was her hand that had reached out to him in her sleep and now had a firm grasp on his sweater. Kakashi relaxed once he had remembered everything since returning to Konoha. Unknowingly, even in her sleep, she was doing everything she could to help settle him. He was sure that she didn't realize the calming effect that she had over him. Although it was apparent that Sakura was at ease with him here, evident by her one hand clinging to him.

Kakashi couldn't see what time it was, but he knew it was still in the middle of the night, so he tried to force himself to fall back asleep. It was easily enough with Sakura's arm as a reassuring weight around his chest and her scent surrounding him.

* * *

Kakashi once again was woken up by the feeling of Sakura's hand pulling gently at his shirt. Her breath at the back of his neck was more substantial this time, as her head had moved closer. Kakashi noticed that the sun was fully up now and figured that it must be well into the morning. It was likely that Sakura would wake up shortly, forcing him to deal with this situation.

Kakashi debated removing her hand and moving away, but he was comfortable and he didn't mind this arrangement. It felt good to have a tether from his phantoms to her reality—and he believed it had been what he needed to sleep through last night without having flashbacks or nightmares.

She sighed loudly and bumped her head against the back of his waking her up.

"Mmm… what?" she said groggily.

"Good morning Sakura," he whispered.

"Uhhh—'Kashi… too early…" She said unintelligibly, as she snuggled her head into the back of his head. She liked the scent of soap he used for his hair—the smell of sandalwood was masculine and soothing.

Kakashi had to chuckle at her disdain for the morning.

Sakura's eyes shot open—not only because he was laughing, but because her hand was on his chest, so she could feel him laugh. She quickly removed her traitorous hand from his chest.

"Sorry Kakashi," she groaned. Sakura moved to sit up and swung her legs off the couch, which brought them to rest against his side. "Did you sleep here all night?" she asked with a yawn.

Kakashi dropped his head back so he was looking up at both Sakura and the ceiling. She stretched her arms and upper body as she yawned.

When she saw him staring at her, she felt overly self-conscious. "What? Do I have something on my face?" She rubbed at her mouth, checking for drool then she patted her hair, hoping that she didn't have hair sticking up all over the place.

"No," he answered.

"Then what?" she demanded gruffly. Sakura took the time to look at him—or as much as she could see, since he was still wearing his mask but no hitai-ate—and he looked tired, but not worn out. Reserved, but not sad or grief-stricken. He looked like himself, which still worried her a little, since he was seasoned at hiding his true feelings and emotions.

He closed his eyes and ignored her. It wasn't the best sleep he ever had—didn't even make the top ten. But at least he slept. He hadn't had any nightmares or flashbacks that woke him up and destroyed his peace of mind.

Sakura sighed, remembering that this was Kakashi, and his past 24 hours were horrible so she let him get away with being confusing.

"Fine, be difficult," she said teasingly and ruffled his hair. "I'm making tamagoyaki and onigiri for breakfast, and then I've got to head out and get more groceries." She stood up and went back into the kitchen.

She needed time to think. Dealing with PTSD and other psychological issues was never her forte. Poisons, broken bones and ruptured organs were more her thing. She had some basic training in dealing with unstable patients, but nothing that went deeper than the surface. Maybe she could broach the topic with Tsunade-sama and see if she could receive some extra training, or if she had any literature on it.

Sakura's main goal was to help Kakashi through this difficult time. But a secondary goal was to give him the tools to deal with other relapses. Since he was going to continue working as a shinobi, then there was bound to be more issues in time. It was just their way of life.

Kakashi watched Sakura leave the living room. He didn't really know what to say to her this morning. He didn't want her to be walking on eggshells around him, and there were only so many ways that he could reassure her he would be okay. He decided on the most forward one.

Kakashi stood up and went into the kitchen and stood behind her; she had a spatula in one hand and was concentrating on cooking breakfast.

She turned around in surprise when she felt Kakashi's presence directly behind her. He grasped her chin, lifted her head, and pressed his masked lips to her forehead—right over her diamond seal mark. Her eyes widened at his unusual actions.

"Sakura, thank you," he murmured. "There's probably more I should say, but I figure that's a good place to start. So, thank you." Kakashi could tell that she was stunned into silence, and not wanting the tamagoyaki to burn, he stepped around her, took the spatula from her hand and finished preparing breakfast.

Sakura finally overcame her daze and turned to him. "Of course Kakashi. I'm here if you want to talk or if you just need to vent. Or even if you just want a friend—I'm here for you. Always and anytime." She reached over and placed a hand on his arm and smiled up at him.

His eyes creased in a smile. Sakura wasn't sure if the smile was fake or not, but it was a good start.

They worked jointly to finish putting breakfast together and then ate in a comfortable silence. Kakashi had lowered his mask to eat, and she did her best not to stare. Even though she's seen it all before, she was trying to give him some privacy. Nevertheless, she couldn't help but steal a glance at him every once in a while, since she found him so attractive.

Looking down at her dish, Sakura mentioned her plans for the morning. "I think I'll leave after breakfast to go get some groceries and such. Is there anything specific that you'd like?"

"Nothing particular comes to mind," Kakashi said. He'd already finished breakfast and slipped his mask back into place. He saw her briefly glance up, hesitating until she saw that his mask was back up. She stood and started putting the dishes in the sink from breakfast.

"Okay then, I probably won't be all that long," she chatted.

Sakura disappeared into her bedroom to get changed and came out a moment later in civilian clothing. Next she slipped into the bathroom to finish getting ready.

Kakashi grabbed his shoes and a scarf and waited at the door for her. He knew that he wasn't obligated to go with her, but he was enjoying her company. He didn't want to think about anything else right now and Sakura's presence kept his demons at bay—so he would remain close to her.

Sakura came back into the main part of her apartment and saw him waiting at the door.

"You're coming with me?" Sakura asked, happily surprised that he would favour doing something so benign like go shopping with her. Kakashi nodded.

Sakura surmised that perhaps he wasn't ready to be alone yet. She had half hoped that he would stay here and rest, so she could pop by the hospital to check on his teammates, give an update to Tsunade, and ask her for more information about PTSD. But she didn't feel comfortable bringing him there because she didn't want to cause a relapse. At some point soon, she would have to find a way to get the information from Tsunade.

They made their way out of her building and into the main thoroughfare where the market and other shops were located. Sakura was typically a fast shopper since she was always needed somewhere else—either on a mission or at the hospital. Kakashi kept up the pace with her, making the odd comment about his likes and dislikes.

Every time they finished at a store, somehow he would end up carrying the bags. Sakura was secretly enjoying this more domestic side of him, but she also missed the light and flirty teasing side of him. She knew that it would take time for him to feel comfortable enough to get back to being the normal and infamous Copy Nin.

After about 30 minutes of shopping, Sakura peered over to Kakashi to see how he was holding up. He looked a little on the tired side, which didn't surprise her. Once they got back to her place, she would see if she could convince him to have a nap. He needed the sleep, and she needed time to do some research.

"Why don't we pick up some takeout on the way back to my place? Do you have any preferences?" Sakura asked.

Kakashi impartially shrugged his shoulders. "As long as it isn't ramen."

Sakura laughed. "I have no problem with that! I think I know of a place you might like." She smiled and turned down another street. The pink-haired medic took him to her favourite curry house; they ordered some take out and made their way back to Sakura's apartment.

They arrived back at her home, and they both sat down to eat their curry while it was hot. Sakura was inhaling her curry—worry eating. She loved her curries, but she was wavering on how to best handle Kakashi and that stressed her out. Furthermore, she knew that he would not like her suggestion (or command) for him to take a nap. She believed that Kakashi was still lacking rest—and sleep was one of the best ways for the body to help heal itself.

"You know, I'm not going to steal your food. You don't have to down it in five seconds," Kakashi commented.

"What? Oh yeah. I always eat fast. There's always something to do, you know," she replied absentmindedly.

"Do you have things that you have to take care of?" Kakashi asked. To anyone else, his voice would sound normal, but to the trained medic, she knew that he was slightly anxious.

Sakura took half a second to calm herself—he was picking up on her emotions and it wasn't good to get him anxious.

"No, Kakashi. I have nothing on my to-do list, I just got into the habit over the years to eat fast. But I would like to suggest that you take a nap," Sakura ended shyly. Even though she was a medical professional, she just told her former sensei and the Rokudaime to take a nap. So it felt weird.

Kakashi stared at Sakura for a second, unsure how to respond to her request. He was about to make light of the situation, by making some sort of joke, but she shyly spoke up before he could.

"Please? Just humour me?" she asked quietly.

"Is this an order from my medic?" he asked sarcastically.

"How about a suggestion from a worried friend?" Sakura said, appealing to him. "You're still tired from everything, and sleep is the best way to recover."

Kakashi wasn't sure how he felt about this, but he couldn't argue that he was tired, so he reluctantly agreed. "You're lucky I like naps," he said with a wink.

Sakura sighed in relief. "Okay, good. You can lie down in the bedroom. I'll just be puttering in the kitchen and doing some reading and research. If you need anything, just call." She was pleased that he agreed so readily.

Kakashi knew that she only wanted to help him. So he followed her request and went to her room.

He noticed that it wasn't girly at all. Her room could almost be considered bare of personality. No girly pinks or throw pillows, just a plain room with a double-sized bed stuck into the corner of the room, similar to his. She had a plant on the shelf beside the group shot of Team 7.

It was still daylight out, but luckily Kakashi had never had a problem before with taking naps in bright sunlight. The only odd thing about this was that he's crawling into Sakura's bed—without Sakura of course.

As he lay down, he could smell her subtle scent that permeated the room, even with fresh sheets. He found that it relaxed him. He spent a few moments trying to think about everything that has gone on in the past few days.

The most striking aspect of it was Sakura and how she was treating him. She had never turned her mothering side on him before. Usually it was her teasing, or chastising, sometimes even harassing, and it was always done with kindness. She was overly protective of her friends, and he was glad that he fell into that category. But this felt different from the times when he came in with physical damage.

Sakura had been there for him over the years, especially when he came back from long and difficult missions. He would usually find a way to run into her to spend some time with her between missions, because he enjoyed her company.

This new side of her had him thinking of her in a bit of a new light.

For now, Kakashi decided to abide by her wishes, and he stretched out on her bed trying to get comfortable enough to fall asleep.

* * *

Sakura felt calmer once Kakashi left the table. She needed time to research to help him. She could still feel that he was awake by the tone of his chakra signature and by the sounds of him tossing and turning on her bed. However, she hoped that it wouldn't be long before he fell asleep.

She took her time to clean up the kitchen and then summoned a small Katsuyu in her palm.

"Good afternoon, Sakura-san, what can I do for you?" came the demure feminine voice.

"Thank you for coming Katsuyu, and I'm sorry to bug you for something as simple as this, but would you be able to relay a message to Tsunade-sama for me? I'm afraid I can't leave my apartment at the moment, but I need to speak with her." Sakura said in a hushed tone, worried that her patient's sensitive hearing would pick up on her talking.

"Of course, Sakura-san. Please wait while I get in touch with her." Katsuyu paused for a moment before continuing. "Okay, I have Tsunade-sama here."

"Please tell Tsunade that Kakashi is doing better, but I still believe he needs more observation. Which means that I will still require a few more days leave from my hospital duties."

"Tsunade-sama says that she understands, and will make arrangements for today and tomorrow's shifts. She asks if you require anything else?"

"If possible, can someone drop off any literature regarding PTSD? I haven't read enough on the subject, and Kakashi needs all the help I can give him."

"Tsunade-sama says you will have some documents within the hour."

"Please tell Tsunade-sama thank you." Sakura paused while Katsuyu relayed the message. "Katsuyu, thank you for your help. I appreciate it." She said with a smile.

"Of course, Sakura-san. If there's nothing else, I will leave now."

"No, there's nothing else, Thank you again."

Katsuyu poofed away, which left Sakura sitting waiting for the documents to arrive.

Sakura made herself a cup of tea and pondered the Kakashi situation. She knew that he was trying his best to act normal around her so as not to worry her. Which was pointless, because she was worried regardless.

She had seen him this way before, but she had been a novice medic. Even then she knew that he had never let anyone close to him, but she had this opportunity so she had to find a way to help him.

After the kettle whistled, she poured the hot water into her mug and moved to the living room. She had only been sitting on her couch a moment or two before there was a soft knock at her door.

She quickly got up, opened the door and saw one of the junior medics standing there with a variety of books and papers stacked in her arms.

"Sakura-senpai, they told me to bring these over to you right away." The young girl said, obviously out of breath from rushing over. Sakura was thankful that hospital staff understood urgency so well.

"Thank you, I appreciate you bringing them over so fast." The pink haired medic said, smiling.

"If there's nothing else, I have to get back to the hospital," the student said politely.

"No, nothing. Thanks again," Sakura said distractedly, already reading the titles of the books and articles. The student wasted no time in turning and heading back to work.

Sakura returned to the couch with the pile of research, and starting to browse through them, to see which one would be best to start.

Sakura spent the next two hours going through a few of the articles and books that were brought to her, trying to formulate a plan to help Kakashi. It would all depend on how willing Kakashi was to take part in. She didn't want to pull the wool over his eyes, but she didn't want to make it overly obvious that this was treatment.

As she went through article after article, book after book, she made notes of what she thought would work best for Kakashi's case.

She saw that exercise and getting outside is a good way to get a clear head, and she had just the right thing in mind. Sakura often went on a long run after a long shift, even if work exhausted her. The fresh air helped her clear her mind and think about life all at the same time. So perhaps a long run would be beneficial for both of them. As for the rest of the stages that could help him, they all fall along the lines of practice relaxation techniques, confiding in a person you trust (which Sakura hoped she qualified as), spending time with positive people and enjoying the peace of nature. So it was her goal to supply all of those things for him. She was sure that he understood that she just wanted to help him, so hopefully he would comply with her treatment plan.

Before Sakura knew it, the sun was setting, and it was nearing 4 hours since Kakashi to her room to rest. She got up once or twice to stretch and checked on him on her way to the washroom. She saw that he was fast asleep on top of her covers, face pressed into her pillow. She wasn't sure how he wasn't suffocating himself, between the mask and sleeping face down.

Sakura decided that it was probably time to put things together for dinner.

Compared to her genin years, she now enjoyed cooking from time to time, especially if there was someone else to cook for. Cooking for one can be depressing so she always tried to invite her friends over now and again to give her someone to cook for. So she was particularly happy that she had a few days of cooking for her friend.

As Sakura moved into the kitchen to prepare for their dinner, when suddenly, she felt a spike in Kakashi's chakra. She didn't hear any yelling or noise from her bedroom, but she hurried over nevertheless.

She saw him sitting on the edge of the bed, legs slung off to the side and his head grasped in his hands. Sakura stood in the doorway for half a second before calling out to him.

"Kakashi?" She whispered. The room was dark, with just the flickering glow of streetlights coming through the windows

He didn't respond verbally, but he attempted to subdue his chakra, so it didn't seem too erratic.

Sakura moved to his side and put a hand on his shoulder. "Are you okay?"

Kakashi did his best to brush off the memories and forget the vivid dream he had just woken up from. "Yes, I'm fine. I just forgot where I was for a quick second," he lied, trying to distract her from the obvious.

He wasn't ready to talk about his dream. It was the beginning of the same dream he always had, however this time it hadn't the chance to progress to where he saw dead friends and became covered in their blood. However, he knew the direction it was leading. It was always the same.

Until she crouched down in front of him. Her fresh floral scent was helping to distract him from the imagery.

Sakura took his hands in hers and brushed her thumbs across his knuckles. Kakashi took the moment to just feel his hands in hers. It helped to ground him, by bringing him to the present moment.

"Kakashi, you know you can talk to me about anything. When you're ready," she added as an afterthought.

"Thanks," he mumbled.

"Come on, let's decide what we're doing for the rest of the day." She tugged on his hands to get him to stand up and follow her.

When he finally rose to his feet, she was still holding onto his hands. He stopped again, and just stood, towering over her, getting his bearings.

His mind was in such conflict, between his dreams versus what stood before him. His former student paused in her pulling. He seemed to hesitate for a second, so with another skim of her fingers across his hands, she pulled him from his thoughts and led him out of the darkened bedroom.

The reluctant man followed her into the living room, where it looked like even more books were spread out on her already chaotic coffee table.

"Been busy, I see," he commented.

"Oh, there are always more things to read. The medical world is always changing and advancing in new ways, and I have to do my best to keep up," Sakura said cheerfully.

"Is there something specific that you're working on these days?" Kakashi said, trying his best to engage in polite conversation. He was still desperately trying to balance himself.

Sakura briefly looked away, not wanting to admit she was researching information that would help him. So she settled for a half truth and described what she had been researching prior to him coming here.

"Actually, I've been researching fibrodysplasia ossificans progressiva, or F.O.P. for short. It's when the body's tendons and ligaments undergo a strange metamorphosis, essentially transforming them into bone. I've also heard rumours that there are kekkei genkai that can perform something similar, which is probably related to Kimimaro."

"That sounds like intensive research," he commented, in awe that she was doing such rigorous investigations.

"I enjoy researching kekkei genkai and other specialties, especially if they have medical links—which most do."

Kakashi looked at her as she cleaned up the coffee table, organizing her notes and stacking her books and papers off to one side.

"Do you have a social life Sakura?" Kakashi asked with a hint of teasing in his voice. He understood the dedication that it took to be a normal doctor or medic, but to be an outstanding one—like she was—the time and effort must be enormous.

Sakura laughed, taking no offense by his statement. "Of course I do. I'm being social with you right now," Sakura declared back to him.

"I'm not sure if this counts," he remarked dryly.

"Of course it counts. You're one of my closest friends!" Sakura exclaimed vehemently.

Kakashi was momentarily stunned. He knew that she considered him a friend, but not one of her closest.

Sakura briefly blushed at her confession, but carried on talking before he thought too deeply about it. "So, I was thinking we can either eat dinner now, or go for a run. The streets will be almost empty at this time of day, as everyone else is settling down for dinner."

Kakashi liked the idea of getting outside and expending some pent up energy and frustrations. The best way to get a good night's sleep was to exhaust yourself to the point where you don't dream—which sounded perfect to him.

"The run sounds good Sakura," he said with a smile on his face.

"Okay. I just need to go throw on some jogging clothes, and then I'll be good to go," she said to him. She left the room to head to the bedroom and get changed. She threw on black tight pants, a light green tank top and a black hoodie. She knew she'd be chilled at first, but after she was running for a few minutes, she would warm up. She did not know if Kakashi brought anything appropriate for working out, but he was a grown man and could figure it out for himself.

Sakura exited her bedroom and saw that Kakashi was wearing his typical jounin pants, his undershirt and a long sleeve top. He didn't change his wardrobe often. But working for the village for so long, and so faithfully, did he really need other clothes? He had already put his shoes on and seemed ready to go.

"Let me just throw on my shoes and then I'll be ready," Sakura said. Kakashi nodded and stood up and joined her at the door.

They left the apartment and made their way downstairs. Sakura didn't stop at the entrance to her building, but kept walking across the street to the bench on the far side. She moved to stretch out her legs before starting to run.

Kakashi stood and watched her. There was something enthralling about watching her stretch out her legs. One leg going to the backrest of the bench and stretching out into a near split. Kakashi swallowed hard as he had a great view of her. That was the thing about kunoichi—their ability to contort their bodies in all sorts of ways always caught Kakashi off guard. He knew that it was slightly perverted of him to think of this, but it was a fact. Kunoichi were simply better in bed than civilians. Their flexibility, their stamina and their responsiveness made them exceptional lovers. The same could be said about shinobi. He knew he was far superior in bed to both civilians and even most other ninja. He wasn't trying to be egotistical, he just knew how to listen to his partner's desires and act accordingly—and he had yet to have any unsatisfied partners.

Sakura looked at Kakashi, and he seemed to be lost in thought as he stared at her. It made her flush a little since he was staring so intently at her as she stretched.

"You should stretch out too so you don't pull anything." She commented.

"I'm ready. I'm always ready for the unknown," he replied offhandedly.

Sakura rolled her eyes at him and moved to the middle of the street. He lazily joined her. She briefly looked up at him, saw him wink and he took off at a steady but light pace.

She quickly caught up to him, keeping pace with his longer stride. She was used to going for about an hour run. She wasn't sure how long he wanted to run for, but she knew he would let her know when he was done.

There was only an occasional person on the streets at this time of day during the winter. People didn't like to spend much time outside in the cold. It was too bitter, and towards the end of the winter, the weather had lost its allure. People were just ready for spring and warmth—which included her too. She enjoyed most of the weather variations here in Konoha. They didn't get the extreme weather that Sunagakure, Amegakura or Yukigakure received. She thought Konoha was lucky in that respect.

Sakura used exercise as a way to clear her mind and relax, especially after shifts at the hospital. While work was often busy, it was always mentally draining. Running helped her leave work at work. She hoped that perhaps Kakashi would feel something along the same lines after a good run.

She looked over at her jogging partner. They were keeping pace with each other, but she could have sworn that she saw the corner of his mask shift to what would be a smirk. She thought he must have noticed her looking at him.

Subtly, Kakashi began to pick up the pace. He was trying to be clever and slowly pick up the speed with her until they were running full out. He knew that she could keep up with him. However, he enjoyed pushing her buttons.

Sakura thought since her mind had wandered that she had slowed down, so when her running partner had advanced further than her, she picked up her speed to match his. It was still a gentle enough pace that she could look around the street as she passed. It had all changed so much since the fourth war. After the devastation of Pein and the destruction of their village everything had to be rebuilt. Poor Tenzo was worked to the bone back then. However, now their village was blooming wonderfully.

Kakashi had once again pushed ahead of her since her mind was still wandering. She was too competitive to let her old sensei outpace her.

Sakura strived ahead again. And one more time, Kakashi picked up the pace. As he passed her, she could have sworn that she saw him grinning.

It finally clicked with her he was racing with her. Trying to get her to go faster and faster. On a basic run like this, they never used chakra. This was just supposed to be light cardio and fresh air. He had a slight advantage with his longer legs, but she wasn't about to let that stop her from matching his pace.

It wasn't long before they were running full out, and he was still in front of her. It was slightly frustrating, but Sakura had to remind herself that he needed something that would put a smile on his face.

They had almost made it to the far side of the village, when he changed directions to head back to her place. It caught her off guard, but she would not give up so easily.

They continued pushing ahead to beat the other, but in the end his longer legs and superior strength kept him in the lead.

The pair of them began to slow down as they were near her place. Letting their muscles relax from the strain of such a fast-paced run. As they saw her building, they abruptly halted.

"Why were you always running ahead of me? This wasn't supposed to be a race. The road was more than wide enough for us to be running side by side!" Sakura huffed playfully, looking at him, catching her breath.

There was a cheeky twinkle to his eyes. "Well, it doesn't look nearly as suspicious with you chasing after me, as it does a masked man in dark clothing chasing after a pretty lady. With your renowned temper, and your overly recognizable hair, it's normal for you to be seen furiously chasing after people," he explained idly. He wasn't out of breath at all—to her disappointment.

Sakura huffed again, as she gently slapped him on the chest and turned to enter her apartment. She didn't bother looking back to see if he was following her. As she came to her apartment door, she glanced at him as he sauntered up the last flight of stairs. He had both hands in his pockets, and he didn't look as if he broke a sweat at all. He looked normal with the grin in his eyes.

Sakura was so happy that he seemed to be returning to his old self. Maybe this time, he's already gone through the worst of it? Maybe he'd be okay now.

Sakura could only hope.

* * *

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you like my story enough to save it as a favourite or have an alert for it, please consider leaving me a review. It doesn't have to be long review, or even in English. All kind reviews are GREATLY appreciated. They are what continue to encourage me to write. Thank you


	5. Something Broken but Mending

Thank you to my amazing beta, TipsyRaconteur! Without you I would have never gotten as far as I have with this story!

**WARNING! ANGSTY CHAPTER AHEAD! Triggers: Depression, PTSD, Injuries, Blood**

* * *

Sakura looked at Kakashi as he came into her apartment, closing the door behind him. They just finished their run and now she was ready for a shower, she might even be tired enough to fall asleep afterwards. Fresh air always does that to her.

"Mind if I continue working out for a bit?" Kakashi asked as he walked to the living room.

"Of course I don't mind. Feel free to do whatever you'd like while you're here," she said as she smiled at him, forgetting his sass from just moments ago. "I'm going to grab a drink of water, finish putting together dinner and then head to the shower."

Kakashi took off his bulky sweater and got into position between her living room and hallway to the bathroom and bedroom. There is a support beam built into the structure that would be strong enough to hold him for what he had planned.

With Sakura in the kitchen, and not around to oppose what he was about to do, he smirked and looked forward to her reaction. He crouched down, placed both hands on the floor, and slowly raised his body into a handstand. Just as she walked back into her living room, he sprung up with just enough force for his feet to graze the ceiling in the throughway, holding himself in place with the assistance of chakra. He placed his hands behind his head and started doing sit ups, upside down.

Sakura couldn't believe what he was doing in her living room. She nearly choked on her water when she came out of the kitchen. She was still holding the cup halfway to her mouth. Her brain was easily distracted with the good looking body hanging upside-down from her ceiling.

Apparently the run had caused Kakashi to sweat a little. He was facing her in only his sweatpants, undershirt and mask. His undershirt clung tightly to his upper body as he worked out. She realized that she was going to have to pass closely by him to get by.

She had to think of something to say to break the tension that she was mostly creating in her own mind. Otherwise she'd just watch him—which wasn't exactly appropriate.

"Is that how you get your hair to stand straight up?" It was a bit weak, but anything was better than staring at him blankly.

He made eye contact with her and grinned. "That's just naturally how it is." He paused briefly in his exercises. "Need to get by?" He knew that she wanted to have a shower, and this would force her to get up close and personal with him.

"Yes please," she said haltingly. He was back to making her shy because of his obvious attractiveness.

"I'll let you pass on one condition," he grinned. "Will you help me with some push-ups after your shower?" he asked as charmingly as he could.

"I guess," she agreed. She walked up to him, expecting him to do a sit up so she could duck under. But instead he sidestepped, leaving only a small space for her to walk by.

Sakura stared in disbelief. She guessed she was lucky that she had higher ceilings, but his face was eye level with her stomach, and she was going to be eye level with his groin. She knew that he was doing this on purpose. It was obvious that he enjoyed teasing her.

Sakura shook her head, gathered her courage and walked past him like she owned the place. Because damn it, she did! This was her home and he wasn't going to make her squirm in her own home. It was obvious that he was starting to feel back to his old self again, by his cheeky attitude.

"Enjoy your sit ups," she said as she walked into her room to gather clothes to wear after her shower.

He had resumed his exercises after she walked past. He enjoyed getting a rise out of her. Getting her face to match her hair colour always brought a smile to his face. His back was to her as she stepped into the bathroom and closed the door.

Sakura tried to let the tension fall from her shoulders as she found some time alone in the little room. It was one thing to have an upset Kakashi staying with her, but a completely different thing when he was acting normal and self-confident. It was hard for her to keep her professionalism in check.

She quickly jumped into the shower, washed and jumped out. She did the rest of her nightly routine before leaving the washroom. By the time she left the washroom, she felt rather tired all of a sudden. She knew she had told Kakashi that she'd help him with his pushups, however she was feeling that she'd likely fall asleep in the middle of his workout.

When she came out of the washroom, she caught him still doing sit ups from her ceiling. He was a good deal sweatier now, and after doing so many sit ups, his muscles were pronounced on his sinewy body. It suddenly became even more difficult to remember why he was here in the first place.

She approached him carefully. "Are you going to let me pass?" She asked from behind him.

"Six more," he panted out. He made her wait behind him until he was done. He crouched down on the ceiling. Sakura thought this was her chance to pass him, but no sooner had that thought passed through her mind did he drop his chakra, flipping, and gently landing on her floor facing her. He slowly stood up directly in front of her, taking in her clean scent as his nose passed over her body. He stood to his full height reaching his arms above his head and stretching out his core, still not letting her pass.

His eyes scrutinized her. She looked so petite and cute with wet hair, shorts and a baggy shirt. She also looked a little tired. He felt as though he was likely the cause of it—which didn't sit well with him. It was his business to look out for his friends, regardless if here, in this situation, he was her 'patient'.

"Still going to help me with pushups?" he asked looking down at her. He had placed his hands on his hips. She couldn't help but stare at his stomach as his muscles were taut with the strain from his vigorous exercise.

Sakura dragged her eyes away from his body to answer his question. "I said I was going to, didn't I?" She moved to pass him, but he still wasn't letting her by.

"You smell like Pakkun," he said in a pleasant deep voice.

Sakura huffed, and pushed his stomach lightly to move him out of her way. The heat and the firmness of his body made her mentally pause. "Thanks Kakashi. That's so kind of you to say that I smell like a dog."

"You know that's not how I meant it. You use the same shampoo as he did when he was a puppy." He followed her into the kitchen and got himself a glass of water. Between the run and the sit ups, he was feeling parched. He refilled his cup twice more before feeling sated.

Sakura disappeared for a brief second before returning with a towel in her hand. "I assume you want me on your back while you do push-ups?" Kakashi nodded. "Then, please wipe off the sweat. I just got clean, and I don't want your man-stink all over me." She tossed the towel at his face, but he caught it before it hit him.

While she said that, a small part of her contradicted that thought. His natural musk wasn't repugnant. Actually she found it rather appealing. He kept his scent natural. Having it too distinguishable from nature can be costly for a ninja.

Kakashi smirked, and put the towel on the back of the chair. He kept his eyes on Sakura while he reached down to the edge of his sleeveless top and pulled it up and over his body.

"There, that should get rid of most of my sweat." He held his dampened shirt out to her.

"I'm not your maid or your wife. Go put it in the laundry yourself," she explained while pointing to the laundry machines in the washroom.

He chuckled. "You're touchy tonight. Something bothering you?" he teased. He could tell that being shirtless made her nervous, which was something that he was thoroughly enjoying. She was so easy to tease this way. He felt as if it was his personal project to keep her between being flustered and keeping a smile on her face.

He dropped his shirt on the floor and ran the towel over his upper body, making a bit of a show for Sakura. He could see her staring at him from the corner of her eyes.

"Shall we move to the living room?" Kakashi said in a bit of a husky voice. He didn't wait for her answer. He proceeded into her living room and gently fell to his knees before her, waiting until she came into view before lowering his eyes and the rest of his body into a plank position. "Ready whenever you are," Kakashi said quietly.

Sakura was caught between being thrilled and hesitant at the situation. She debated if she should lay on her back or her front. She wasn't sure how long he was going to be doing push-ups. Regardless, the most comfortable position for her had always been lying on her stomach while on his back, with her head cushioned on her arms that crossed his shoulder blades.

She moved up to him, and the best way to get on his back was to first straddle him. She moved to his side, threw a leg over his side and sat back on his butt. She placed her hands on his shoulders and slowly lowered her chest to his back. Fully pressing her barely-covered chest against his bare back. She could feel his whole body stiffen at her movements. She brought her legs alongside his so she was stretched out on him.

"Have you settled?" His voice had taken on a deeper tone and she could feel the vibrations of through his chest and into hers.

"Mmmm, yes, I'm ready," she breathed next to his ear. "I might fall asleep, since I'm already feeling exhausted."

Kakashi just hummed in acknowledgement. _Maybe this wasn't the best of ideas,_ he thought. While her clothes generally hid her body, having it pressed against his hid nothing. Although feeling her whole body pressed against his was certainly helping keep his mind distracted from any type of negative thoughts, he felt as though he was walking the thin line of being a pervert.

He began his push-ups, getting into the rhythm of things. He felt Sakura settle into his back. He could feel her nearly melting into him. He felt her warmth seep into his back.

"Is this okay for you? It must be a little uncomfortable for you." Sakura mumbled quietly. Her head was resting on her crossed hands and her face pointed to one side of his head. He could feel every little puff of air whenever she breathed out. It was incredibly distracting. He stopped counting nearly after he had started. As their roles were reversed for who is teasing whom, he did his best to focus on the exercises.

"It's fine, Sakura. Thank you for your help with this."

"Mmmhmmm," she replied sleepily.

He did his best to focus on his movements. Up and down. Up and down. He wasn't planning on being at it all night, as Gai would do, but he had planned on doing it until his arms were significantly tired.

Anything he could do to distract his mind. He was coming to the conclusion that Sakura's idea of exercise was potentially working and keeping his mind distracted. Normally he'd be brooding about each thing at home, alone. In the dark. Barely getting on with his day. Caught up in doubt that would circle his mind. And he would be caught up in it for days.

With Sakura's approach of helping him, his mind was distracted from his misery. He was wondering how long her presence would keep it at bay. It was a tricky balance between dealing with the issue and ignoring it.

As his brain thought over these things, he realized that around 20 minutes had already passed. He was keeping up a steady pace—as was her breathing. It had evened out, indicating that she had fallen into a light slumber.

He kept going for another 20 minutes before the strain in his shoulders was just about all he could bear. Now he had to carefully wake her without upsetting her.

He stopped in a plank, steadied his breathing and called out to her gently. "Sakura?" he had turned his head, so that he could see her out of one of his eyes. "Hey Sakura? I'm done with my exercises for now."

She squinted her eyes tightly closed as she came back to consciousness. "Hmm, okay." She gently stretched and pushed herself into a sitting position with her legs brought back to his sides. She rubbed her eyes and stood up, stretching her arms over her head without moving away from him.

Kakashi dropped down to his stomach still between her legs. He took a moment to take a few calming deep breaths before turning over. She was still stretching sleepily above him. Her shirt had risen slightly and he had a chance to see her stomach.

Without looking down at him, she stepped away and moved to the couch to lay down once again. She blindly reached for the blanket along the back of the couch and pulled it over her. Kakashi just watched her curl up to sleep.

"Night 'Kashi," she mumbled. "There's dinner on the counter. I'm too sleepy to eat." She yawned once she finished talking.

"Good night Sakura," he said quietly. Not wanting to wake her up, he quietly picked up his sweaty shirt and towel and brought them to the laundry machines that were in the washroom. He took a brief look back at the woman sleeping on the couch. She seemed completely out of it, so he didn't bother getting a change of clothes from his pack. He needed a hot shower that would help relax his tight muscles from the exercises. He didn't want a long shower, just something to rinse the sweat off.

He hadn't brought over shampoo or anything to wash with, but he didn't think Sakura would mind if he used scent of her shampoo was the same that she's always used. He remembered when Pakkun was a pup and one of the first bonding experiences between the two adolescents was bath time. The particular scent of shampoo brought back fond memories of Kakashi's father introducing him to Pakkun. It was a precious memory of his first ninken and of happier times with his father.

Kakashi thought how strange it was that scent could bring him to such a happy place.

Kakashi was more used to how scent can lead him back to dark places. That's what had happened to him yesterday. The scent of blood was a common trigger for him. It often brought him back to when he was a child and found his father in a pool of his own blood after he committed suicide. Or when he murdered Rin. Sure, everyone did their best to convince him that she had jumped in front of his chidori, but that didn't change the fact that it was he who had ended her life, with his hands.

It didn't change the fact that the scent of blood can send him spiraling downwards. And that unfortunately was only one of his triggers.

Kakashi shook his head, spraying water droplets around the shower. He tried to clear his mind. Thinking of being here, in Sakura's home, using up her water reserves while he got lost in thought.

He rinsed, turned off the shower and got out. He grabbed a spare towel from the shelf and dried off. He tied the towel around his waist, and went into the living room to get his change of clothes, and quickly changed into them in the washroom and headed back out in the living room once more.

He looked down at Sakura. Her foot was sticking out from under her blanket and she was breathing heavily—almost a light snore.

While he knew her reasoning for giving him her bed made sense, he still wasn't going to take it. Putting most of his shinobi skills to work, he gently picked her up, with her blanket still covering her and brought her to her room. He placed her down on her bed and covered her with her heavier blanket. She had barely stirred, shifting only slightly to get more comfortable in her own bed.

Rather than hanging around and getting caught watching her sleep, he silently left her room and settled on the couch in the living room. Even though he didn't exactly fit, her couch was still more comfortable than how he typically slept while on missions—on the ground.

He rested with his hands behind his head. He wasn't altogether tired yet, probably because of his nap, but there wasn't much else to do. He decided to try to read his book for a while to help relax his mind.

As Kakashi was reading his book, he thought to himself that perhaps he wasn't going to be stuck in a dark mood for days. Just maybe with Sakura's help, they'd finally figured out how to handle his PTSD attacks.

* * *

Kakashi bolted awake, caught betwixt the dark nightmare and murky reality.

He had been revisited by the same demons of his past. Ones that filled his mind with horrors, his nose with the scent of blood, and his eyes witnessing the terrors of dead and dying friends. They called out to him, begged him to save them. He was powerless to fight for them. He couldn't protect them. They cried his name with their dying breath. It haunted him to no end.

His guilt hindering him from moving past the blood-soaked visions. He was having a hard time catching his breath. A crushing weight on his chest was constricting his ability to draw in life-giving air.

It was his fault. His fault that his friends were hurt. His fault that his friends had died.

He fought with his mask, tearing the obstacle away from his face. His hands smearing something hot and wet across his cheeks and chin as he struggled with the constricting piece of fabric.

He looked down and his hands were dark with blood. Across each palm, there were four little puncture marks where his blunt nails had dug in. His hands were stiff from being clenched so rigidly.

So much blood came from such tiny wounds.

He vaulted to the kitchen sink where he turned on the water and desperately scrubbed his hands clean of guilt. The sink filled with crimson water, circling down the drain. He couldn't seem to get his hands clean. To wash away the disgrace.

He grabbed the brush and scoured his hands raw. His blood-smeared face now had track marks from tears cascading down to his chin.

He hadn't known she had entered the kitchen behind him.

Sakura quietly moved to the dark room after she felt a spike in his chakra. She saw him at the sink. His whole body shaking while he furiously washed his hands. He hadn't noticed her yet. He seemed to be mentally trapped. She briefly worried about approaching him. She wasn't sure how he'd react when he was unstable like this.

"Kakashi?" she called out quietly. He spun around so fast, she was afraid for a second that he was going to attack. But he stood there, barefoot, in loose pants, in his undershirt with the mask slumped around his neck. His hands were dripping bloody water all over, and he had blood covering parts of his face.

She had never seen him so broken. He was falling apart before her very eyes.

She carefully walked up to him in the dark kitchen, slowly took a towel and placed it under the water to wet an edge of it. She turned to him, and brought the wet towel to his face. Gingerly, she wiped the crimson marks off his face, making sure to get every drop. He stood still as a statue. The only thing that moved was the tears rolling down his cheeks while his chest heaving desperately for air.

His hands had dropped to his sides, still dripping with blood, creating little pools on either side of him. She had never seen him this bad before.

Sakura rinsed the towel in the running water again before turning off the taps. She turned to the deathly still man, and gently took one of his hands, wiped it clean and brushed her thumb across the four little punctures that she could see clearly as her green chakra illuminated their hands. Slowly, each small cut closed, halting any more blood from dripping out. She gently let go of his first hand and moved on to the other, doing the same thing for the small cuts there.

Once she finished tending his wounds, she tossed the blood-soaked towel into the sink. Without much thought, she reached up and put her hands at the back of his head to pull down so that she could hug him.

At first, he didn't move, he was bent at such an awkward angle for him—just slumped against her. Even with her holding him up, he didn't have the energy to hold it together anymore. So he dropped. He dropped to his knees, creating a thud that echoed in the silence of the night.

The sound and movement startled Sakura. As he collapsed, she couldn't help but gently fall to the ground herself, still supporting him.

"Oh Kakashi," she muttered. Her voice cracked as she said his name. His arms moved to encircle her. His grip tightened as she moved into a seated position. Her legs out in front of her, and her back to the cupboards. Kakashi had moved his head into her lap, his face pressing into her stomach. His arms still around her and his legs pulled into his chest. He had reverted to a young boy. Terrified and shaking because of a horrible nightmare.

The only thing that Sakura could think to do was to hold him, brushing her hand through his hair, trying to calm him.

Sakura thought she heard him say something, but it was so quiet, and his voice so low.

She bent her head lower to hear what he was saying.

"I—I can't stop. I'm sorry..." His voice hitched with each word. She could feel her clothes dampen with his tears. She felt his overwhelming sadness and it broke her heart.

"It's okay, just breathe. You don't have to be sorry for anything. I've got you." She pulled him tighter against her.

She knew that he spent most of his life with a mask on, but that mask was so ingrained into his very being, she wasn't sure if anyone had even seen him like this—this exposed. Even at his worst, it had never been this bad.

They stayed like that for what seemed like hours, and without a clock it probably had been that long. She kept watch over him for the night. Trying to say reassuring things to him to help assuage some of the horrible visions that he was blaming himself for, while he was mumbling under his breath.

Mostly, she just held him, brushing her fingers through his hair, murmuring words of comfort. Occasionally the shaking would stop for a few minutes, other times it would get worse. A few times he would start hyperventilating and panicking so much that she had to use some chakra to forcefully calm him and help him breathe.

Sakura felt devastated. It was everything she could do to keep her own mask up and take care of the broken man who was desperately clinging to her. She didn't want to break down because of how shattered he was, and he needed a strong anchor so desperately. It was the least she could do for him tonight.

By the time the sun started to lighten the sky outside, he had settled enough and just barely able to speak. The trace amounts of sunlight shining through the windows seem to help bring Kakashi out of his guilt-induced numbness. After he had been quiet for a few moments, he turned readjusting his position, stretched out his legs and looked up at her.

"Do you know what the saddest word is?"

"What?" she asked quietly. One of her hands still stroking his hair while her other hand rested on his chest over his heart.

"Almost. I was almost good enough. She almost survived. He almost made it home. They almost lived." He didn't allow his eyes to make contact with hers. He was still feeling such shame.

She brushed his hair back from his face. "How about this: Almost every important choice in our lives is really just an expression of hope." He looked up at her, shocked. "You're a good person—you've gone through so much, but that doesn't make you any less of a good person."

"I'm not good, Sakura. I've done things, things I'm not proud of." He closed his eyes waiting for judgement. But it never came.

She placed her hand on top of his that was resting on his abdomen and squeezed gently. He opened his eyes and finally looked up at her. His hair was still a mess and in the morning sunlight he looked more handsome and more human than she'd ever seen before.

"I guess you'll just have to trust me when I say that you're a good man," she smiled down at him. She couldn't stop playing with his hair. There was something immensely satisfying being able to do this with him—the best part was, that it seemed to comfort him.

For several more minutes, they continued lying in silence, taking peace in each other's company.

Once he had settled again, Sakura thought that he might be all right to bring up what triggered him. "Was it a dream that caused you to relapse?"

He sighed. He let his eyes depart from her soft emerald depths. "Dreams. Visions. Memories. What does it matter what I saw? I will never be able to forget." He refocused his eyes on her. "My mind has the scary capability of being dark and deranged."

"You're afraid of your dreams?"

"My memories, yes," he conceded quietly.

"Sometimes, memories are the worst form of torture," she agreed faintly.

Kakashi saw shadows pass across her own eyes. He knew that she was speaking from her personal experiences. He tipped his head back into her hand to get her attention and to encourage her to continue playing with his hair. "If you say I'm a good person, then there's no way that you're not good as well. We've all done what we had to do to get through missions and through the war."

"I once heard some say that 'the first casualty of war is innocence'. That's more than true for us. But we're not alone. Kakashi, I'm here if you need to talk." The hand that was in his hair, moved down to his cheek, and brushed against it softly. He reached up and reciprocated the gesture.

This type of intimacy was a first for him. He wished that she had never seen him like she had, but this side of him was now out in the open with her. It scared him to be that vulnerable.

But he trusted her and he wanted to be more open with her. He had little choice at this point. His mask was down now.

It was as if she was reading his mind, as her hand reached up and tugged gently on the mask bunched around his neck.

"How old were you when you started wearing this?"

He smiled up at her. "How many times did you guys plague me about my mask?" His smile didn't reach his eyes, but it was better than nothing. "It was before I joined the academy. Before my father died," he paused in thought. "It was probably soon after my mother died. So when I was around three years old, I guess."

"So young," she said somberly.

"The mask is just another tool in our trade for me now. Only close friends have seen me without it." He reached up and rubbed his jaw and the scruff that had grown. "Plus it's nice to not have to shave everyday," he smiled up at her.

"That time your smile reached your eyes," she said as she smiled back at him. "Kakashi, are you up for a quick outing?"

He widened his eyes in bafflement. "What? Now? I...ah...I guess." He slowly sat up, still keeping eye contact with her.

"It'll be quick, I promise. Okay, I just want to put on warmer clothes. I'll be right back."

She tried to jump up, but she stumbled a little before catching herself.

"Sakura? Are you okay?" He reached out to her hips to help steady her.

She laughed, "Yes, my legs just fell asleep. They're fine."

She continued to move to her room at a slower pace to put on heavier clothes. He shifted so that his back was resting against the cupboards

He still felt shaken from his nightmare, but opening up to Sakura, and having her soothe away some of his paralyzing fears, he felt as though he was a little lighter this morning. He raked a hand through his hair while still sitting on the ground. Her view of him was now forever changed. He was worried that she was going to treat him as an invalid, or just always walk on eggshells around him. He hoped that this wasn't going to be the case, however, only time would tell.

Sakura came back out of her room in sweat pants and a hoodie. She walked up to him and stood before him. The room was still mostly dark, even though the sun was starting to rise.

"I promise we won't be gone long, but you should probably still throw on a sweater," she suggested. She held out her hand to him, encouraging him to get up.

He placed his much larger hand in hers, and let her tug him up. Despite her smaller hands and stature, she was more than capable of hoisting him up without the use of chakra. He took a step closer to her since he was stiff and not fully in control of his body.

"We can teleport there, since it's on the other side of town." She paused for a second. "Aren't you going to throw on a sweater?"

"If we're not going to be long, then no. I'll be fine." He pulled up both his physical and mental mask once more. His eyes shifted to hers, seemingly calm. "Ready."

Rather than pester him about his lack of proper clothing, she reached out, activated her chakra and transported them to the Hokage's mountain.

Since it was late March, it was still fairly cold out, but Kakashi didn't seem to mind. They stood there quietly together for a few minutes before Sakura spoke again.

"I wanted to bring you here to remind you of something. I know you blame yourself for your friends getting hurt, both on this past mission and previous ones. But I want you to remember that you were chosen to be our Hokage. You were chosen because people respect you. They trust you. They love you." Sakura blushed a little when she said that, but didn't stop there. "They know that you would do anything to protect them." She turned to him before continuing. She looked directly into his tired charcoal eyes, while resting one hand on his face and the other on his shoulder, making sure that she had his full attention.

"You have always done everything you could for your friends, teammates and for Konoha. You wouldn't have become our Hokage otherwise."

Kakashi looked pensive over what she said, still not fully believing her, regardless of her kind words.

"Kakashi, please trust me on this. I'm so grateful to have you in my life, and I gladly trust you with it."

She could see that he still was having a hard time believing her, so before he could react, she got on her tippy toes and kissed him on the cheek.

She noticed that her action seemed to have startled him out of his pensive mood. A chill shook his body, whether it was from the cool breeze or from her kiss, she couldn't tell. However, she stood beside him, put an arm around him and rested her head on his shoulder.

Before he could think too much about what she had done, she continued speaking.

"Things always look brighter in the light of day, Kakashi."

They stood at the top of the mountain, watching the sun rise and illuminate Konoha. They remained there, in silence, absorbing the heat from the sun and from each other.

"Ready to head back?" she asked after a few quiet moments breaking him out of his thoughts.

He took a deep breath and put his arm across her shoulders.

"Not just yet."

Together they gazed out onto their village as the rising sun stretched towards them. Kakashi found a kind of solace in Sakura's presence. It was something he hoped that he could learn to trust.

* * *

Thank you for reading my story! If you enjoyed it, please leave a review and tell me which parts you liked.


	6. Something Cold

The sun had been up for a few hours when Kakashi had arrived at Sakura's apartment. He had been home for a week, and with her guidance, he had gotten past what happened on the mission. Three days ago, he moved back to his own apartment, after he was able to sleep through the night.

He felt a new connection between them. No one in the past had been able to help him the way she had. It was awe-inspiring to feel those moments of peace while in her presence. It startled him that he craved more time with her. Prior to the wreck of his last mission, he had already begun to feel things changing between them. He felt a strong attraction to her and he knew she was attracted to him—plus it was always fun making her blush.

He needed some clarity on what was going on between them. So Kakashi decided that another seemingly harmless encounter between the two of them might help to shed some light on this new side of their bond.

He knew that she was off of work today. He had been sure to find out her work schedule for the next few days, so that he could plan accordingly.

It was as good of a day as any to do some long-needed training of the new additions to his team, and Sakura would be the perfect counterpart to help.

Kakashi skillfully opened Sakura's locked balcony door a little to let his partner in, then he moved from her balcony towards her bedroom window with a little help from chakra to watch his partner in action.

Kakashi gazed at the figure of Sakura, who was mostly hidden under her blankets. Sure, she would probably strangle him if she caught him peeking like this, but he hid his chakra well as he watched as one of his new ninken pups head in to put his plan in motion.

Mio, a 10-week-old white mutt, was one of his brightest ninken yet, and one of the only female dogs that he had ever chosen to take into active service. At her young age, she was already able to learn some human words, while it wasn't until Pakkun was four months that he had started to learn human speech. So Kakashi had high hopes for Mio.

He watched Mio as she quietly walked up to the side of Sakura's bed. She was almost too short to jump up onto the bed, but thankfully, the bed frame was low to the ground. After a second attempt, Mio was finally able to scramble onto Sakura's blankets. Sakura must have sensed something amiss, because she shifted in her sleep so that the blanket that was covering her slipped down to her waist—exposing her bare back.

Thankfully for Kakashi, she was sleeping on her stomach so it was only her back that he was privy to. He felt a warm liquid come from his nose, and he tasted blood as it reached his lips. He wasn't all that surprised that this happened. He wouldn't deny that he desired her in a way that went beyond friendship.

Regardless of his own foolishness, he saw that when Sakura had shifted, her one leg had snuck out from beneath the blankets. That leg was just close enough to Mio for her plan to be put into action. Mio had lowered her head to first sniff at Sakura's knee, and once she put her scent to memory, Mio licked it a few times. Sakura murmured that it tickled, but didn't wake up fully. Mio put a little more enthusiasm to her lick, and included a nuzzle to Sakura's knee to see if that would work to get the human's attention.

Sakura turned her head to look at whatever it was that tickled her knee. She opened her eyes and saw two big brown eyes staring back at her. Sakura blinked a few times before realizing that a small white dog was sitting on her bed.

Sakura startled awake. "Gah! What? How'd you get in here?!"

"Mmmy...my naame ...MiiiO," the canine stuttered. Human speech was not natural for dogs, but she was bright and picking it up fast. "Wee, ta-rain. Youu coma helppp ta-rain." Kakashi had practiced with Mio what she was to say, it might not have come out perfectly, but it was close enough.

Mio sat there after she had relayed her message, with her tongue hanging out of her mouth and her tail wagging.

Sakura looked closely at Mio and saw a small bandanna around her neck with a 'he-no-he-no-mo-he-ji' face on it. It was Kakashi's mark. Sakura didn't recognize this little dog, but it was most assuredly one of Kakashi's ninken.

Ninken are not normal dogs. They are highly intelligent and trained killers. They aren't the type of dog that you reach your hand out to pet without permission. They certainly are not pets. Mio seemed nice and she was young, but she could tell that Mio was attempting to be serious about her mission to retrieve Sakura. So Sakura kept it all business for the ninken puppy.

"Good morning Mio. Did Kakashi say which training grounds I was to meet him at?" Sakura asked with a big yawn. She started to stretch beneath the covers a little bit. She was glad that Kakashi sent a female dog. As much as she loved Pakkun and the rest of the pack, she would have felt a little self-conscious with one of the boys here while she's naked under the covers.

"Kaka-he meet at free." It took Sakura a second to translate what Mio said. _Meet at free?_ She thought for another second. _Ahh! Three! Not free. As in training ground three._ Sakura nodded in understanding.

"Did Kakashi say what time he wanted to meet at?" Sakura pulled the covers up and turned around to face Mio. She had a long busy day at the hospital yesterday. But she'd gotten home around 8 last night, had a late dinner and crashed. She had slept well, thankfully, but she hadn't planned on doing much today. Perhaps a few hours at the training grounds would be nice.

"Now."

Trying to get the sleep out of her eyes Sakura rubber a hand over her face.

"Okay Mio. I need to get changed and grab a light breakfast, and then we can head out. Why don't you go wait in the living room, and I'll be right out."

Mio didn't reply, she just jumped off the bed and trotted out of the room.

Sakura thought she heard something out of her window, but when she turned and looked, there was nothing there. _Probably just the wind_ , Sakura thought, as she stood up to get ready for the day. She grabbed her typical winter field clothes, and made sure to pack her pouches full of kunai, shuriken and senbon. She strapped her tanto to the small of her back as she was leaving her bedroom.

She saw Mio investigating the rest of her apartment with her nose, and Sakura could only imagine what Mio could detect with her heightened sense of smell. Sakura's apartment was clean and tidy, but she knew Mio was smelling for more than just cleanliness.

Sakura grabbed a bowl of leftover rice from her refrigerator and warmed it in the microwave until it was scorching and then cracked an egg over it and mixed it together with some soya sauce. It might not be an overly healthy breakfast, but it would give her the energy to survive some training with Kakashi. After quickly finishing her breakfast, she put her dishes in the sink, grabbed an apple and her canteen of water and headed to the front door.

"Are you ready to go, Mio?" Sakura asked as she slipped on her shoes.

With one last sniff to her couch, Mio trotted over to Sakura and walked out as Sakura opened the door. They walked down the stairs together, and as Sakura reached the ground level, she looked down to Mio.

"I need a good warm-up before I get to the training grounds. Do you mind if we run?"

"Yes! Mi-O love to run!" Mio said enthusiastically.

"Sounds good! I'll race you there!" Sakura laughed as Mio bolted off already. Obviously Mio still had the energy of a puppy, and Sakura had to push to keep up with her.

* * *

Kakashi slipped away from Sakura's bedroom window before she turned over and exposed herself to him—he wasn't completely without morals. He made his way to training ground three and dropped his pack by one of the big trees. There before him was a small lake with open grasslands around the lake with deep forests beyond that. It didn't look like much because all the deciduous trees had dropped their leaves months ago before winter; however, there were still coniferous trees that kept the forest looking a little green. The lake wasn't frozen over, but he was sure it was icy cold.

Kakashi's goal today was to spend some time working with his ninken, including the three new additions to his pack: Mio, a 10-week-old white mutt, Kaito, a 14-week-old brown short-haired mix, and Tamotsu an 8-week-old brown and black Shikoku inu. Kakashi hated to admit it, but some of his pack was getting ready to retire, and he wanted to make sure that he had no gaps in abilities in his group.

With a nip to his own thumb to draw a little blood, Kakashi performed the summoning jutsu to call the rest of his pack here. With an explosion of mist, ten dogs appeared—his original eight, and the two other puppies.

"Yo, Kakashi. It's only been a few weeks since the last time you summoned us. Have you missed us?" Pakkun greeted casually.

"Pakkun, good morning. It's good to see you all again. I was hoping to do a few hours of training, especially for Mio, Kaito and Tamotsu. But we're just waiting for the last of our team to show up. They should be here shortly."

"Ahh, probably not a bad idea," Pakkun said in his gruff voice. "I could use a good workout," he said as he started to stretch his legs and back.

The pack began to meander around taking in all the scents that this area had to provide. He was sure that they were checking for other humans, but Kakashi was sure that no one had been out here for days. The two puppies, on the other hand, just started to play and tackle each other. Kakashi leaned against the tree and waited for Sakura and Mio to make an appearance.

He didn't have to wait long until he sensed her chakra. He saw little Mio running at full speed towards him, and Sakura was on her tail.

Kakashi grinned. It seemed that Sakura was excited to do some training. The two ladies stopped with a flurry right before Kakashi.

Sakura laughed, "Let's call that a tie!" Mio barked in agreement. The rest of the pack came to greet Sakura and Mio.

"Good morning Sakura." Kakashi welcomed her. Sakura was flushed from the race and laughing, and Kakashi found that look enticing.

She smiled back, "Good morning!"

"Kakashi, you didn't tell me that it was Sakura joining us today! Sakura-chan, long time no see! How are you doing? Are you still using the same shampoo as me?"

"Pakkun! It's great to see you and the rest of the pack again!" Sakura said with a broad grin. She really loved dogs, especially Kakashi's pack. "I think so, but I'm sure your nose could tell." Sakura knelt down so that he could get a sniff.

"Yep, still the same!" Pakkun knew his shampoos. This perhaps would seem weird, but only to outsiders.

"Are the two of you just about done talking about hair care?" Kakashi asked in good humour.

"Don't bad mouth self-care, Kakashi. Practicing self-care is good for the mental well-being of shinobi. Maybe you should try running a brush through your hair every once in a while," Pakkun chastised.

Before Kakashi could answer, Sakura voiced her opinion. "I don't think I'd be able to recognize Kakashi without his hair looking just like that," Sakura teased. She felt overly tempted to touch Kakashi's hair for some reason. _Although it does look like it needs a trim,_ Sakura thought humorously.

"Let's get down to business. Mio, thank you for getting Sakura and bringing her here. Sakura, I hoped you'd be willing to help me with training Mio, Kaito and Tamotsu." Kakashi indicated to the puppies that sat before him. "Sometimes it's easier to determine their abilities while they're working with someone else."

"Okay, so how can I help?"

"We're going to play a giant game of tag. Me against all of you. I'm going to tie a ribbon on all of you. I have to retrieve them all, and you have to stop me."

"Okay. What about you? Do we have to get the bells off of you or something?" Sakura inquired sarcastically.

Kakashi laughed. "No, not this time. I just need you all to work together to protect yourselves and Sakura. Sakura, you get two ribbons, and if I get both off of you, that's game and I win. As for the rest of you, if I get your ribbon, you're out and you have to go sit by this tree. If any of you have ribbons left on you when this alarm sounds, you all win." Kakashi pulled out his alarm clock.

"Sounds like fun. But first, I'd like to show your new recruits what I can do, and remind the rest of your pack of my abilities." Sakura drew a kunai from her pouch and carefully approached Kakashi. She wasn't too sure how the pack was going to like what she was about to do. However, she'd do just about anything to demonstrate her talents and to prove a point.

She took his hand, smiling sweetly up to him she slowly peeled off one of his gloves. She held his larger hand in hers and extracted his first finger slowly. She pulled it down towards the pack so that they could all see what she was going to do. Kakashi was still staring at her curiously but calmly. It was nice that he trusted her so explicitly. His hands were large and warm—there was something about a man's capable hands that she found singularly attractive. Thinking about the potential of those hands on her made her skin tingle with goosebumps.

She gave him one last smile before she dragged the kunai across his finger. Not deep enough to severely injure, but deep enough to encourage a consistent stream of blood. The medic pocketed the kunai and brought her other hand to hover over it. She began to heal the cut, letting her hands glow bright green, showing the dogs the cut slowly healing before their eyes. She felt bad for half a second for demonstrating on Kakashi her abilities, but was a good way to show them that he trusted her and that she could heal whatever ailments they have.

The puppies seemed mesmerized by Sakura's green glowing hands.

Once Sakura finished healing his finger, he moved to take a quick look at it, but she didn't let his hand go. Instead she brushed her thumb against it, rubbing off any lingering traces of his blood that had oozed out of the cut. The newly-healed cut was more sensitive to touch—even her light one.

He was still watching her as she clued in that she had been rubbing his finger a little longer than was probably necessary.

"Thank you Sakura-chan," he said with a smile, and he teasingly pulled a lock of her hair lightly. Then he knelt down, and pulled a ribbon from his pocket.

Kakashi reached and pulled her leg closer to him and deftly tied the ribbon to her thigh holster. The ribbon was perforated so that it would tear easily from her. Without looking up at her, Kakashi took her by the hips and turned her around, so that he'd have clear access to her tanto holster. He quickly tied another ribbon there. Sakura blushed a little with the way he was manhandling her.

He stood up behind her and addressed the pack. "Let's get one of these on each of you and get started. The day is wasting," Kakashi said eagerly. He passed a handful of ribbons to Sakura.

Sakura knelt back down and waited for the dogs to approach her. Pakkun was the first.

"I think I'll tie this to your bandanna Pakkun, is that okay?"

"Sounds good, Sakura-chan," Pakkun said with a toothy grin.

Pakkun sat beside Sakura and waited with her for the next to come up to her. Mio stepped up. Sakura repeated the same question she asked Pakkun, since Mio was only wearing a bandanna. Mio seemed to nod her head yes, and Sakura tied on the ribbon. Mio moved on and investigated the ribbon closely.

Bull gently pushed his way through to Sakura, and he presented his paw for her to tie on the ribbon. Sakura smiled and tied the ribbon to the massive dog paw.

"Thank you Bull." Bull sat with his tongue hanging out. He brushed gently against her as he walked by. He was a non-verbal dog, but he was more than intelligent enough to understand what was going on.

Sakura tied ribbons next on Shiba, Bisuke and Guruko, and each of them greeted Sakura in their own way. She'd met each of them before, years ago when she was a genin. Kakashi took care of Urushi, Akino, Uhei, and the two puppies, Kaito and Tamotsu.

Sakura and all the dogs had their ribbons tied on. Kakashi took his alarm clock and set it for two hours from now.

"Okay, that's it. Does anyone have any questions?" Kakashi asked.

Sakura looked around, "I guess we're ready." Sakura slipped on her gloves, and got ready for the mock battle with Kakashi. He was never one to pull his punches. He wouldn't hit with his full force, but he will make the hit.

Sakura wasn't about to pull her punches either. She knew just how good Kakashi is, but she wasn't sure if Kakashi realized how good _she was_. She was hoping she'd get a chance to show him. It had been years since they've sparred one-on-one.

Sakura looked down towards the pack, and they were all looking up to her, waiting for her signal to break. She grinned at them and then nodded.

The more senior portion of the pack peeled off at high speeds, and the puppies rushed into the deep forest, doing their best to keep up. They were easy targets, so they did what they had to do to protect themselves in the meantime.

Sakura pounced away from the Copy Nin at high speed, rushing to follow the pack. The main purpose of this training wasn't for Sakura to beat Kakashi, but to keep away from him, and for the dogs to protect her.

The pack picked up on her movements through the trees and started to criss-cross around her, becoming almost a moving protective shield around her. With the pack anticipating all of her moves and protecting her this way, it would be difficult for Kakashi to get to her. The puppies were doing their best to keep up and learn from the other dogs.

Sakura dropped down closer to the ground. The three puppies and Bull were down there. Bull was too heavy to move through the branches nimbly, but on the ground, he was able to do almost anything. Sakura was expecting Kakashi's attack at any point now, and she didn't have long to wait.

A few kunai came at her from above, and Sakura reached for one of her own kunai to defend herself. She turned and flipped around midair to block the kunai, directing the ricochet away from the dogs as well, righting herself before she needed to take another leap. Shiba flew out of nowhere, it seemed, and caught the handle of a kunai in his mouth before it made it close to Sakura. He dropped to run beside Sakura, and he indicated that she should take the kunai.

"Better in your hands than in my mouth." Shiba commented with a toothy grin. He had a lot of spunk for a dog, but she was glad she had the pack on her side.

Pakkun moved to her side next. "Sakura-chan, do we have a plan?" He asked while jumping from limb to limb.

"Not really. This isn't that type of training, we just need to survive the two hours without all of us getting caught. Kakashi wants to see how cohesively the group can work together, and to give the pups some experience working with the rest of you and a human. I believe Kakashi is also using this time to see where the pups strengths and weaknesses lie. But if you see him, give him a good nip on the ass!" Sakura smirked.

"If the opportunity arises, I'm sure all of us will give him a good nip!" Pakkun commented with a gruff laugh. The rest of the pack barked in agreement. They probably didn't get many chances to go against Kakashi in play, so they were going to enjoy it while it lasted.

Suddenly there were smoke bombs blowing up everywhere in front of them. They were scentless smoke bombs, since Kakashi didn't want to torture any of the dogs with strong scents, just inhibit their sight. It was enough to bring the group to a skidding halt. Sakura jumped to the ground and the pack stood on guard around her waiting for Kakashi's attack.

Sakura was trying to sense where Kakashi was by detecting his chakra, but he was masking it well. Something quickly ran in front of her and grabbed Uhei. He yelped as he was caught unaware and picked up by Kakashi.

Sakura softly whistled to the dogs to get their attention. The smoke was stopping them from seeing more than a few feet, but they could see Sakura clearly enough to see her hand gestures. She indicated to them to dig underground and attack Kakashi on the sly. Sakura would be the bait for their trap. Bull, Pakkun, Kaito, Tamotsu, and Mio stayed with Sakura above ground, while the rest of them dug in. More kunai came raining down towards them, and Sakura blocked all of them while the dogs around her growled in warning. Kakashi darted in from behind trying to get to Bull, but Urushi broke free from the ground and attacked Kakashi, knocking him off course. The rest of the pack that had dug into the ground also sprung from the ground to attack Kakashi and deter him from getting to Sakura.

Sakura saw her chance and made a run for it, knowing that this was the game. The three puppies, Bull and Pakkun hightailed it out of there with her. There was a good chance that most of the other dogs would catch up to them.

Before long, Akino, Bisuke, and Guruko all caught up to them, which meant that Kakashi had gotten Urushi and Shiba. Three ribbons captured, ten ribbons to go, and it had already been just over half an hour.

All of a sudden, a mud wall shot up in front of the running group. Sakura surged forward and broke the wall down with a chakra-filled punch, hopefully giving the dogs enough time to dodge and avoid all of the falling debris.

All of the flying wall bits fell to the ground before the dogs flew through, but the uneven ground made it more difficult for the dogs to cross—especially the puppies. Sakura heard a yelp, and looked back to see Tamotsu stumbling through the broken mud wall. Sakura wasn't one to leave a comrade behind, so she turned and dashed towards Tamotsu.

At the same time, Kakashi saw an opportunity to get the ribbon off of Tamotsu, but he didn't expect Sakura to come barreling into him and knocking him out of the way.

"Oh, no you don't!" Sakura yelled.

Sakura landed in front of Tamotsu who seemed to have developed a bit of a limp because of his trip. The rest of the pack gathered on either side of her, and it seemed that there was going to be a face-off between the opposing sides. Sakura stepped forward, drew her tanto and crouched to a ready position.

Kakashi skidded to a halt not too far away. He saw Sakura and his pack in front of him standing in opposition. For some reason, it made him happy to see them all working together so well, and for Sakura to be so protective of his four-legged family. Kakashi grinned as he saw Sakura advance the attack wielding her tanto.

Sakura swiftly attacked him with taijutsu while still holding the tanto. She held back her chakra-laced punches and just kept them to normal punches. She had hoped that the pack would help Tamotsu get out of there, but there was only so much that they could do, especially since they were supposed to be protecting her.

"Bull! Get him out of here!" Sakura called out. She advanced on Kakashi again with her tanto this time, trying to buy them some time. Bisuke and Akino were nipping at Kakashi's heels to keep him focused on the fight, rather than on Bull and Tamotsu.

Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Bull pick Tamotsu by the scruff of his neck and leap out of the brawl.

Sakura had to find a way to distract Kakashi to extract herself, Bisuke, and Akino. Suddenly Sakura thought of a way to get to Kakashi, and it wasn't exactly playing by the book, but it would work.

She jumped in front of him, purposefully positioning herself in such a way that it gave him a bit of a peek of the top of her breasts. She saw him glance in her direction.

"Kakashi!" She screamed at him in accusation. "Were you just checking out my breasts?!" She knew he hadn't been ogling them, but she also knew that he would blanch at her bluff.

And he did just that. He paused fighting for a second and held up his hands in defense and swung his eyes up to her face, ready to protest that he did no such thing.

But his eye contact was exactly what she wanted, and she caught him in a hazy genjutsu which would blur his vision and make him think he was suddenly sinking into the earth, deaf to anything she said.

Sakura knew that wouldn't hold him long, but it was long enough for them all to backpedal out of there, and give her time to see to Tamotsu's injury.

"Quick, scatter! He's caught in a genjutsu." Sakura announced to Bisuke and Akino, as well as the rest of the pack that remained near them.

Sakura headed in the direction that Bull ran off to. She caught up to them quickly and indicated to Bull that she would take Tamotsu and they could continue running.

"Pakkun, can you hide our trail for a bit? I want to take a look at Tamotsu," she called out.

They ran for another few minutes before Sakura stopped, and knelt down on the ground. The pack set up guard around her again. She placed Tamotsu down. "Tamotsu, I'm going to take a look at your paw. I will do my best to not make it hurt more," Sakura said gently.

Tamotsu leaned onto his left hind leg and let Sakura look at his injured right hind leg.

Sakura could tell the poor guy was in a fair amount of pain. She did an initial scan and saw that it was a fairly bad sprain. It could take weeks to heal if left alone. She knew her time was limited, so she pushed her chakra as gently as possible into the hind leg. She was sure it was his first time being healed this way, and that in itself could be unusual.

Sakura was so concentrated on healing that she didn't notice Tamotsu move his head to her arm and give it a quick lick. His little bit of assurance and appreciation made her smile.

"It's okay, it's almost all healed. Then you'll be able to run again," Sakura reassured Tamotsu.

All of a sudden, Bull jumped in front of her and started to growl. She guessed that Kakashi had broken out of the genjutsu and was already on their trail. Bull, Bisuke, Akino, Guruko, and Kaito leapt into an attack as Kakashi swooped down to them.

"Sneaky kunoichi! I forgot that you're also a genjutsu type. Although that was a weak one to use," Kakashi commented while outmaneuvering biting dogs.

"Well I didn't want to completely incapacitate you. Just distract you long enough to get the job done." Sakura was talking to him distractedly because she was still focused on healing Tamotsu.

Kakashi saw an opening to attack Sakura with some non-detrimental taijutsu. He cascaded down towards her, knowing that she would avoid his kick to her ribs—but as he got a half a second away from hitting her, she didn't move, and he was past the point of stopping now. He hadn't used nearly his full strength, but he was still using enough force to easily bruise and potentially break bones. She took the kick to her ribs without shying away.

Sakura knew that a kick was coming, but she was still healing Tamotsu, so she didn't move away in time to avoid it. All she could do was to take the kick and protect Tamotsu. At the last second, she picked up Tamotsu and brought him to her chest so that he would not get further injured. She was knocked a few feet from where she had been squatted down.

"You okay, Tamotsu?" she grumbled out.

He answered with a quick lick to her cheek, and then he slipped out of her arms to face Kakashi, who was a little stunned by what just happened. Tamotsu growled as ferociously as a little puppy could as his hackles raised and he took a protective stance before Sakura. The rest of the pack rejoined Tamotsu and Sakura, all of them getting vocal about Kakashi's abuse to their temporary pack leader.

Sakura turned around as she stood up to glare at the man before her. She knew that he hadn't really meant to hit her, but that didn't mean that it didn't hurt any less. She still had her tanto drawn, which she pointed at Kakashi.

"You're on!" she provoked. She flew at him before the rest of the pack could move, aiming at him with both the tanto and chakra-laced punches in tandem. Her tanto grazed him a few times in non-vital spots, but he still seemed to be able to avoid her punches. That was until the dogs joined the melee; then she could tell that Kakashi was having a hard time keeping up with the fiercely biting teeth and Sakura's furious attacks.

"You know, you were supposed to dodge that kick," Kakashi huffed, dodging another attempt to break his nose.

"And your only goal is supposed to be the ribbons," Sakura countered. "Not kicking the shit out of me." She aimed a roundhouse kick to his side, which didn't make full contact, but still grazed him and would leave a similar size and shape of a bruise as he left on her.

While he stumbled back from her kick, Tamotsu and Bull bit him. Bull wasn't trying hard to hurt his pack leader, so it was more of a slobbering grip on his calf, and Tamotsu didn't have strong enough jaws to hurt Kakashi yet, even though his bite was meant to be merciless. Apparently, Tamotsu held some animosity against Kakashi.

However, because the bites weren't sufficient to stop Kakashi, he grabbed both of their ribbons. Sakura saw her opening and flash-stepped behind Kakashi and held him in place with her tanto against his neck.

"Too bad this doesn't count towards anything," Sakura breathed in his ear.

"I'd say it counts." Kakashi carefully raised his hand to show the new ribbon he had in his hand that was previously attached to her thigh holster. "Thanks for making my job easier and getting close to me," he said arrogantly, pausing to catch his breath.

What Kakashi had failed to notice was that the tanto wasn't the only weapon held against his body.

"Look down carefully, Kakashi." In his wide stance, he completely missed the kunai that was held alongside his inner thigh, precious inches from his groin. She had him there. He stood thoroughly immobilized.

"That isn't nice Sakura," Kakashi growled deeply.

"What's that old saying? All's fair in love and war. Now if you don't mind, we're going to retreat from this section. We still have just over an hour to spend in this training session, and I plan on making the most of it." She had motioned to the pack to disperse, and she waiting an extra minute or so to give them adequate time to move away from here. She carefully tapped the kunai to his inner thigh. "Always fun tangling with you Kakashi," she flirted with him.

Kakashi stiffened with her movements near his groin, and then relaxed as she disappeared again in a swirl of petals. He knew she hadn't gone far because she would have to rejoin with the rest of his pack. He was still underestimating her skills and speed.

He still had six ribbons on dogs and one ribbon left on her to retrieve. He was only about halfway done. _I better pick up the pace if I want to beat this challenge_ , he thought. Before he got back to the chase, he couldn't help himself but take a quick feel of his groin to make sure that everything was where it should be and that there was no blood. He didn't think Sakura would ever intentionally hurt him in such a horrific way, but mistakes do happen.

Kakashi breathed a sigh of relief when things were fine down there. He took a quick look around him to determine which way they had gone and resumed chase.

They were getting better and hiding their tracks, even the remaining pups were picking up on it. But he was incredibly familiar with his pack, so tracking them was just easier for him. As for Sakura, since spending more time with her recently, he had grown to be strangely attuned to her scent, and he'd catch a whiff of it every once in a while.

He was worried about how intense Tamotsu became after he had accidentally kicked Sakura. They'd have to have some one-on-one time to build the trust again, as his goal was to have a strong and loyal pack.

Kakashi followed their scent until he found a false trail; he investigated the surrounding area and found two more such diversions before finally coming upon the real one. He had wasted another 20 minutes just trying to catch up with them.

He meandered through the forest trying to stay on the real trail. The general direction seemed to be bringing him back towards the pond where they had left their bags. He wasn't too sure how he was going to engage Sakura and the pack again, since he was still trying to catch up to them. He had been surprised at Sakura's ferocity towards him this mock battle. At the same time, he greatly enjoyed clashing with her. A battle was a good way to determine one's true nature. She was loyal, strong willed and spirited. If she truly attacked him with everything she had in her, he wasn't sure if he'd actually win.

He jumped through the forest, gaining speed on the pack. He was catching up on them; however, he probably only had 25 minutes left until the time ran out on their little game. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw a blur of fur dart towards him. He knew to expect a few last-ditch surprise attacks; however, time was running out for all of them. Bisuke, Akino, and Pakkun jumped out at him from a few directions, trying to catch him off guard.

"You're not going to catch her this time, Boss. She's grown to be out of your league," Pakkun taunted, nipping at him.

"That might be true, but I still have a few tricks up my sleeves," he huffed as he dodged various teeth directed at him.

Kakashi felt that things were moving along too slowly for him to beat the deadline, so he performed Shadow of the Dancing Leaf technique and fell in behind Akino as he flew through the forest. He was able to grab Akino's ribbon and Pakkun, but Bisuke slipped away.

With only 20 minutes remaining, Kakashi was closing in on the rest of the pack and Sakura. The only dogs left were small, but feisty—not to mention the feisty kunoichi. But his adrenaline was pumping, which could only help him win. He sped towards the rest of the pack at top speed, as he wanted to end this before he ran out of time.

Sakura had ended back where they had started—at the small lake near where they had dropped their bags. She had Kaito, Mio, Bisuke, and Guruko surrounding her. The pups were too young to know how to walk on water, so she couldn't bring the battle out there yet. The more experienced dogs were small but fast. Perhaps if they were all to rush him they might have a chance to last the remaining time.

The kunoichi took out her tanto and a few shuriken, preparing for the next encounter. The dogs stood at the ready, teeth bared, hackles raised, growling and on edge, waiting for their pack leader to arrive.

However, instead of the Copy Nin arriving, a thick mist rolled in, obscuring their sight once more. The remaining dogs slowly backed up until they were nearly stepping on the kunoichi. She could tell that they were anxious but not nervous—just excited to battle.

At the last second, Sakura was able to deflect the barrage of kunai thrown towards her and the dogs—but it was close. As quickly as she could, she threw her shuriken in the direction that the kunai had originated from, hoping that it would throw him off. Without warning, the two remaining pups, Kaito and Mio, charged into the mist with bared teeth. It wasn't long before she heard two squawks from the pups being picked up without their permission.

That just left Bisuke and Guruko to guard her. They stayed in step with her every move, since that was their directive. She backed up to the water's edge, moving out of the mist. There was no way to get a clear view of anything while surrounded by such a heavy mist.

Suddenly there was an upheaval of water surrounding her. Kakashi had lifted a water formation wall around her, stopping her from moving much further. Slowly the mist lessened and Kakashi stood before her kunai drawn, ready to take her on. Bisuke and Guruko did their best and charged him from either side, while Sakura had jumped and was coming down on him from above. She anticipated him flipping backwards, dodging her chakra-laden fist. She pushed her chakra from her fist and into the water creating a sonic shock wave that would leave Kakashi on unsteady footing. Both dogs had prepared for her punch and had leapt into the air to dodge the tidal wave that she created.

A second after she recovered from her first move, she proceeded onto the next phase of her attack—her hands already forming the seal for sticky water. She hoped that she had predicted where her counterpart was going to land correctly. If she caught his feet and stilled his movements, she'd likely be able to beat him and the time limit.

She watched him fall directly into the sticky water, and he realized that it was too late and that he was trapped. His eyes widened as he wrenched his feet, trying to release himself from the trap. The two dogs dove at him, Bisuke latching on to his foot that was close to getting out from the sticky water, and Guruko onto an arm, disabling him. Sakura dashed around him and vaulted towards his remaining free arm, twisting her body around his. Pulling it tightly around his body, she pressed his arm into a restrictive restraint behind him. She bound his hand to his body with more sticky water before darting away.

Kakashi used his sheer strength to flick Guruko off his arm, all the while reaching out his hand and snatching the ribbon on the first dog. Just as quickly, Kakashi reached down to Bisuke's ribbon who had only a half second before releasing his leg in an attempt to get clear of the frustrated and bound ninja—however Kakashi was faster this time.

Both dogs barked to let Sakura know that they've been tagged out, and now it was down to the two ninja. The water wall was still up which severely limited the battle area. The kunoichi had landed a few meters in front of Kakashi after sealing his hand behind his back. She looked towards the bound shinobi and smirked.

"Looks like you're a little stuck there, Kakashi. It's a lucky thing for you that I'm not after any sort of bells this time."

"You should know better by now, Sakura, to look underneath the underneath." The bound Kakashi splashed down to a puddle of water before her eyes, as a hand reached out from the water, grabbed her ankle and dragged her down with a strong force.

"Fuck!" she yelped as her body was submerged into the icy water.

Kakashi was a strong swimmer, and darted towards her remaining ribbon that was attached to her tanto holder at the small of her back. In a desperate move, Sakura created a water vortex, trying to keep the ninja away from her. It briefly caught the Copy Nin, while Sakura struggled to the surface for a gasp of air.

Not a second later, she was pulled back under by Kakashi. She wasn't sure how long he could hold his breath for, but she was sure that she could stay under longer—something she would just have to prove to him.

With a rough estimate of how much time was left before the alarm went off, Sakura moved to take advantage of the risky ploy that she came up with. Kakashi was swimming hard towards her, and in a last attempt, she pushed off of him with her feet, using his stomach as a springboard. It pushed her deeper into the water, while forcing the air from his lungs. She began the final technique that would end the game in her favour.

Kakashi had no other choice but to surface and take in much-needed oxygen. He brought chakra to his forearms, using them as leverage to pull his body from the chilled water. He slowly came to a kneeling position on the water, waiting for Sakura to surface.

She should be up any second. So he waited.

She would come up screaming at him for pulling her under water. Sputtering mad at him, he thought as he waited.

She would come up just in time to take the last ribbon off of her, and he would win the day.

Any second now. He was still waiting.

She would come up. More seconds ticked by.

He slowly stood up looking around him. He dispelled the water wall, the mist and waited anxiously for her to rise from the water.

After a minute had passed, the dogs had all come to the water's edge, and started barking in apprehension. They were realizing that something wasn't right. The ones that could walk on water came up beside Kakashi, waiting and barking and whining anxiously, trying to call out to their fallen comrade.

She still hadn't surfaced. His heart froze as he thought that she was gone—for good.

And it was his fault.

* * *

dun dun dun...

Thank you for all who reviewed so far! They truly make my day! AND they help me write!


	7. Something Sweet

Thank you to my lovely beta reader, TipsyRaconteur who keeps putting up with my crazy stuff.

And thank you so much to all of those who have read and reviewed. Each review I receive puts a smile on my face, and I'm especially grateful for receiving them when the days are hard-and there's been a few of those lately. So your reviews help me so much.

So _**THANK YOU**_!

* * *

Kakashi's mind was racing. Sakura still hadn't surfaced from icy water.

Was she caught on something? Had she passed out? Why hadn't she at least floated to the surface? What was taking so long?

Off in the distance Kakashi could hear the alarm clock going off—alerting him to the end of the mock battle. It mirrored the alarms going off in his own mind.

He was just about to dive into the water when he felt a hand grab onto his ankle gently and he looked down in surprise to see the pale feminine hand gentle take hold of him as a lifeline.

He quickly bent down, grabbed her wrist and quickly pulled her fully out of the water.

"Fuck! Sakura! What happened?" He noticed that her lips were blue and she was moving sluggishly.

Her teeth chatter as she proclaimed, "I won," she smiled weakly.

He pulled her to him and into his arms. He picked her up and rushed her back to shore.

"Get every stick and log from the surrounding area and pile it by the bags." He heard Pakkun call out. The team of dogs rushed off to fulfill the order.

"What did you do? How did you stay down there for over four minutes?" He demanded of her. Part of him was sick with worry while another part of him was impressed at her resilience and determination.

In between chattering teeth she explained, "I slowed down my heart, my blood, and dulled my core temperature down, and I pushed my mind to a stagnant state to protect my mental functions. I pretty much put myself into a self-induced coma. I can stay in that state for a period of time. The cold water helped too." Her whole body was racked with shivers.

"That probably wasn't a good idea."

"Well, it worked. I knew I only had to last a few minutes. And so I won. I want you to treat me to dinner."

He ignored her dinner request, still worried about the frozen body in his arms. "Can you warm yourself back up with your chakra?"

"What do you think I've been doing since I came out of the water? It'll take several minutes, but I'm not in danger of getting hypothermia." She paused as another bout of intense quakes shook her body. "Probably."

Kakashi carried her to the shore where he placed her on her feet on the ground by the bags. The dogs had made a large mound of sticks and logs.

"Did you bring a change of clothes?"

"No, I didn't realize we were going to have a water fight," she said dryly.

"Well, I brought an extra sweater—you can wear it. You should at least remove your soaking wet sweater. I'll get a fire started." He dug through his bag and pulled out his spare sweater and tossed it at her.

Kakashi turned his back and faced the pile of wood, and called out a katon jutsu, creating a burst of flames and heat that drew Sakura towards it.

She quickly shucked her soaking wet sweater and undershirt and put on his dry one. It wasn't a perfect solution, since she wasn't about to drop her pants or the rest of her clothes with 14 sets of eyes watching her. It would have to do for now—at least until she could get home and get changed.

She turned around to see Bull already lying down and all of the dogs staring up at her expectantly.

"What? I'm fine, guys; don't worry so much."

"I think we'd all believe you if your lips weren't still blue." Kakashi had taken off his bulky sweater and was down to his sleeveless shirt with attached mask. He needed time as well to warm up after his own dip into the ice cold water. He walked up to her and before she could ask what he was doing, he picked her up and moved to Bull's side and sat down. He leaned up against Bull and allowed her to settle against his chest, between his legs, with the fire raging in front of her. It was only a second later when all of the dogs moved to her sides, under their bent legs, on top of her feet, while Mio and Tamotsu crawled into her lap. All of the dogs snuggled down, sharing their body heat with their pack leaders.

Sakura smiled brightly, as she was so happy to be surrounded by the whole pack. She rested her hands on the two puppies on her stomach, petting their warm fur. She was so happy to have a doggy blanket all around her. She really loved dogs—they were the most loyal of creatures. "This is the best way to get warm after that cold dip!"

If she had looked up at Kakashi after she said that, she might have seen his startled expression, as he felt her body still shivering against his. The last thing he wanted was for him to turn this somewhat innocent action into something awkward. He really didn't want to grow aroused while she rested so tightly against him. He just tried to breathe deeply and think of something else.

However he couldn't stop himself after he gently placed his hands in her lap on top of the two puppies. Sakura couldn't help but stare at his arms that encircled her. She bent her head as she felt her face flush. She found his arms tantalizing—those strong arms, covered in scars, surrounding her. At least her face was getting some colour back.

"Since you're so proficient with medical jutsu, is there anything else that you can do that I should be warned about?" Kakashi asked.

"Oh, I'm sure there's a lot, but it's all classified."

"You do remember that I was the Rokudaime, right? So you can tell me anything, and I'll keep it a secret."

She replied in her most serious tone she could muster. "Of course, Hokage-sama, but I'm still not telling. A woman has got to have some secrets." She leaned back fully into his chest, absorbing his warmth and sharing hers. The fluffy doggy blanket and blazing fire was quickly doing wonders to warm her up. The warmth emanating from Kakashi's was also a good thing too, even if it was making her blush a little.

"How are your ribs? From when I kicked you?" he asked her. They felt Tamotsu shift on her lap, and they both moved to reassure the pup—Kakashi kept one hand on his little furry body, while Sakura moved to scratch Tamotsu's ears.

"They're a little sore, but I'll heal them once I get warm. I caught you in your ribs as well, didn't I? Do they hurt? Do you have any other injuries that require my attention? And don't lie, because I'll check," she pressured him.

"Just a few bruises, but not so much as a scratch. And if you won't leave it alone, you can look at my ribs later, once you reach a normal temperature. You're still shivering and you still look pale." He lifted her hand to show her the bluish tinge of her skin compared to his. He placed it back on top of Mio and placed his over top. He leaned back into Bull, trying to focus on just getting warm and nothing else.

After a few minutes of being surrounded by so many warm furry bodies and leaning against Kakashi, she had finally reached a normal temperature again. She re-delegated her chakra from producing heat to healing her ribs. Healing her own injuries always took half as long in comparison to healing injuries on other people. With his hand still covering hers, she flipped their hands so that she was holding his, their fingers intertwined. She slowly pushed her chakra into his body through their linked hands, fixing little bruises, aches and pains as she pushed her chakra deeper.

"You don't have to fix every little thing, you know. I'm used to healing the normal way."

"Yes, but I can, so why not. There's no need for you to be in any type of pain or soreness."

"That's not the point—"

"You're right. The point is I want to, and you're going to let me, because I'm not accepting 'no' for an answer. Just shush already and let me do this."

"You know, you're pretty pushy," he said as he relented—not that he had much of a choice.

"You need it. You're stubborn." She shifted her head to look up at him, but she could really only see his neck and chin. He was looking straight into the fire.

"That's the pot calling the kettle black."

"I don't know what you're talking about. I'm perfect, just the way I am. So what are you cooking for us for dinner tonight?"

"Ummm, I hadn't really thought that far in advance. Any requests?"

"No, whatever you want works for me. Just keep the pack around. I'd like to bring them a treat as a thank you for the good work today." As soon as she said that, a few ears perked and turned in her direction. The pack might have been resting, but they were always aware of what was going on around them.

"You're going to spoil them. Do I get anything?" he asked teasingly.

"You pulled me into a cold lake. I don't know if you deserve anything."

"I'm getting you warm now, aren't I?"

Sakura hummed in response, and melted further into his chest. "I guess that's helping a little."

Kakashi laughed breathlessly since he really didn't know what to say next. He was still trying to think about anything other than the fact that she was resting between his legs and against his chest, fingers entwined. If he wasn't careful, he'd get excited, and she'd feel it. He doubted it'd be much of a surprise, but he didn't want to move things along like that while they were out in the open like this.

Her hands had stopped pushing chakra into his hand; however, she had yet to let his hand go. The size difference between their hands was impressive. The longer he thought about it, the more impressed he was by the strength and capability that were held in those petite hands of hers.

Out of the blue, Sakura started to move to get up and leave the warm and doggy-covered embrace.

"I need a hot shower and a change of clothes," she said as she stood up, still situated between his legs. Kakashi looked rather surprised at her sudden movements. Sakura had been thoroughly enjoying all aspects of sitting with him, surrounded by his dogs, but there was something fun about keeping him on edge and making him work hard for his time with her. It was entertaining teasing him and keeping him frustrated and guessing. She knew he was working hard to not get physically excited. She always thought it was much more fun to be a woman—she could be aroused and most people would never be the wiser. Unless of course you had a sensitive nose like Kakashi. She didn't want him figuring out that she was starting to get turned on while in this situation. It just wasn't the right time or place for an intimate interlude.

Sakura looked down at him as he looked up at her, slightly confused. "I'll be over later, around 4. As I mentioned, I'd like to give the dogs a treat. And I'll see if I can figure out what to get you as a treat." She carefully stepped out of the mound of dogs. "Thanks for a fun morning everyone." She gathered her discarded sweater, smiled at the group that was all watching her with interest, and 'poofed' away in a typical Kakashi method.

"I can see why everyone gets mad whenever I do that," he said, lost in thought.

"Boss, what's going with you and Sakura?" Pakkun asked as he walked up the man's chest.

"I honestly don't know." He paused as he looked around. "Let's clean up and go back to my place. We can see if I can fit eleven dogs into my apartment."

The Copy Nin stood up, petting Bull's head as a thank you for being a backrest and a source of warmth for him. As the man picked up his bag and other discarded things around their temporary camp, the dogs scrapped dirt onto the fire to put it out.

It was still relatively cold out, especially now that the fire has been put out, but Kakashi couldn't teleport to his apartment with all eleven dogs at once, so they would have to make a run for it.

After gathering all of his stuff, he looked around at the dogs who seemed to be waiting for his move. He took off as he threw his bag on his back. He wasn't going hurrying since he had a whole pack to keep track of. Plus, he didn't want to scare the civilians too much.

Both a shower and grocery shopping was required before Sakura showed back up. But he had several hours, since it was only just coming up to lunch time. He could certainly use some time to read a little, too.

So far, today was turning out to be one of Kakashi's favourite days.

* * *

After Sakura arrived back home, she had a long hot shower, changed into comfortable and warm clothes, and then moved to the couch to be lazy for a while. She relaxed with some 'light' reading on medical abnormalities, and continued some of her medical research.

It was almost time for her to run out and pick up the treats she promised for the pack, and a second stop to pick up a treat for Kakashi. Since she was in the mood to feel a little sexy, she decided to wear a matching set of soft pink lace undergarments. She didn't think that Kakashi would get a chance to see the pretty pieces, especially since she was wearing just a long-sleeved, soft-green top and white pants, but she loved wearing sexy items for herself.

Once she made a special stop to get a treat for Kakashi, she stopped off at the butcher and picked up various-sized bones for the dogs to chew on, and a few slabs of meat for them as well. She figured that she could cut them up into an assortment of sizes once she reached Kakashi's place. She left the butcher's with a smile on her face as she headed over to her former team leader's home.

Sakura was enjoying this stage of whatever it was going on between her and Kakashi. It was flirty and fun. Teasing him, and getting excited herself, all while toeing that line. They were almost at the point of no return—soon they wouldn't be able to act as if their flirty behaviours had never happened. However, she didn't want to ignore it. She wanted him, and she was going to have him. But not tonight. Tonight was another chance to push into that line just a little harder. Tease each other a little more, but not cross that line. That was the fun part of this game.

She decided to enter his apartment through the balcony door, rather than knocking and waiting at the main door. She wanted him to know that she was comfortable enough to just walk into his territory.

Not that she got far once she entered. She was mobbed by eleven barking dogs all at once. They were apparently as eager for her to appear as she'd hoped Kakashi would be.

When he entered his living room to see a mound of dogs and a feminine arm sticking up holding a bag of treats above the dogs, all he could do was chuckle.

"Well, that's what you get for telling them that you were going to bring them treats." He stood at the edge of the pile, arms crossed and waiting for her to call out for help. He wasn't going to lift a finger otherwise.

Very slowly she stood up, but her lower half was still stuck by all of the dogs.

"Come on guys, I have to get into the kitchen before I can give you guys anything." She looked at the silver-haired man, pleadingly. He was wearing baggy pants and a sweater, but no mask or undershirt. He looked casual with his sleeves rolled up to his elbows, exposing his muscular forearms—those were a weakness for her.

"Oh, you need help, do you?"

"Come on, Kakashi, help a girl out, would you?"

"I guess I could help you out a little, but only if you brought me a treat too."

"Kakashi!" she snapped at him in mock-frustration.

He walked up to the edge of the pile of dogs, reached over grabbed her by the waist and lifted her clear out of the hyperactive pack. They all looked so disappointed with their new toy being removed from their furry grasp.

Sakura turned to them, trying to reassure them. "I've got to go into the kitchen first before you guys get your treats, but don't worry, I've got something for each of you," she smiled at them and headed into the kitchen with Kakashi.

He abruptly stopped, turned and held out his hand. "And where's my treat?"

"Maybe later. Help me divide these treats for them first." She stepped around him and dumped the first bag of beef bones into the sink; she had various sizes for the various sizes of dogs. She opened up the other bag and pulled out the slabs of meat that she planned on cutting up and giving each dog.

"Wow—they're going to love you," Kakashi said in disbelief. "They're probably going to love you more than me. You're spoiling my dogs," he said, jokingly perturbed with her outrageous but thoughtful gift for his pack.

"Come on, stop being childish. Help me cut up that meat and then we can hand it out to them all together." He sighed and went to help her out.

"They're never going to listen to me again."

"Kakashi, stop pouting. They're your pack, and we're in your home. I'm the outsider here. Don't worry, they won't love you any less." She placed her hand on his arm and squeezed it in reassurance. He simply smiled back.

The pair of them spent the next twenty minutes preparing and handing out the treats. Once the dogs were all satisfied, Sakura turned to Kakashi with a smile on her face.

"So, what are you making me for dinner? I hope it's something delicious, because I'm famished!"

"Umm, it's been a while since I've cooked for anyone here, but I decided to go with one of my favourites. Grilled saury and eggplant, with rice and pickled vegetables and miso soup. I hope that's okay." He hesitated, but he looked at her out of the corner of his eyes and saw that she was still grinning.

He reached over and picked up the worn down cookbook that was resting on his counter. "I got the recipes from here, so it should be good."

"May I see?"

He passed her the cookbook that he retrieved from his family home earlier. When he had stopped by the Hatake farm house, it was in a poor state. He didn't know what he wanted to do with the old house. It had been years since he had been back there. The gardens were thoroughly overgrown and parts of the fence were falling down. Several of the windows were broken allowing birds and small animals to make nests and live in the house throughout the winter. He was surprised when he didn't see any human activity in the abandoned house. He suspected it was only a matter of time before a wayward kid went in to check things out. Pausing for a moment at the edge of his property, he thought that he could smell just a hint of a man around the perimeter. But he figured it was just a good neighbour looking in on the property.

Some of his family's possessions were locked away in an airtight box that pests couldn't get into. That was where he found his mother's cookbook. One day he would have to deal with his family's house, but not today.

"It looks old. Is it yours?" Sakura asked softly, bringing him out of his thoughts.

"It's mine now, I guess. It was my mother's." He watched as her reaction turned into a startled look. He assumed it was because he never really spoke about his parents.

She reached out and laid her hand on his forearm, squeezing it gently. His arm tensed under her hand. She dragged her eyes up his body to his unmasked face. He slowly turned towards her. She could have sworn that he was going to kiss her, but both were startled when some of the dogs started barking for an unknown reason. They jumped apart as if they were two teenagers caught doing something that wasn't allowed.

Kakashi brought a hand behind his head and laughed. "Are you going to be my sous-chef?"

Sakura grinned at him. "Nope! I would normally, but since I won this morning, you get to do all of the work, and I get to sit and watch you."

"Oh? Is that how it's going to be? Especially after I helped to warm you up, earlier today?" he teased with raised eyebrows. "Well, if that's how it's going to be, then I'm glad I did most of the preparation already." He turned his back to her, and started pulling things out of his refrigerator. He bent over to pull some things out of the lower shelves, and she couldn't help but ogle his fine body. Even in loose pants, his butt looked great.

She had to giggle to herself. She caught herself staring at her former sensei's ass and it was turning her on. She kind of felt like she was playing with fire.

Kakashi turned around and gave her an odd look at her giggle, which only made her laugh more.

"Have you been drinking?"

"What? No! Can't I smile and laugh?" she said as she continued to laugh. "But now that you mention it, I'll take a drink. Do you have any beer?"

"Yeah, I have a few." He turned back to the fridge, bent over and pulled out a beer. She couldn't hold back another snicker. He did his best to ignore her giggles as he passed her the drink after opening it for her.

"Thanks," she said as she grinned at him. She took a swig of the ice-cold beverage. It was dangerous mixing alcohol and a man that she was attracted to. She was definitely playing with fire. However she figured she could handle him—as she was hoping that he would be able to handle her.

Kakashi kept himself busy with boiling the water for the miso soup and getting the grill hot enough to cook the eggplant and fish. He got the impression that Sakura was enjoying him doing all the work in the kitchen while she relaxed. Which he didn't mind, since he was enjoying her being here. He could get used to something like this—her spending time in his home, with him, and his pack. It felt normal—at least what he suspected a normal life should feel like.

As Kakashi was preparing dinner, a bit of food splashed on the front of his clothes. Sakura noticed and teased him about it.

"You need an apron," she giggled. "I'm sure I can find one suitable for you. Perhaps a pink frilly one?" She imagined him for half a second wearing his full jounin outfit with a pink frilly apron, and it nearly brought her to tears from laughter.

"I'd only wear one if it said 'Kiss the Cook', and then that'd be the only thing I'd wear," he said as seriously as he could. "Especially if it would save me from doing extra laundry all the time," he pointed out.

The grin slowly slipped from Sakura's face, the beer she was holding pausing only halfway to her lips, and she just stared at his back. If he looked at her, he would have seen a look of pure desire cross her face—so it was a good thing he had his back turned. She felt a sharp throb between her legs, that turned into a continuous dull pulse as she watched him. Picturing Kakashi in just an apron was almost more than she could handle. It took Kakashi changing the subject to her to break her mind from her wanton wanderings.

"I think dinner will be ready in about five minutes."

Sakura was still watching him cook, drinking her beer with the casual smile returning to her face. Before she knew it, the miso soup and the food on the grill were ready.

Kakashi plated the food and brought it to the table where Sakura was still relaxing. He grabbed himself a beer, and sat down across from her. Without much ceremony, they dug in.

"Mmmm...Kakashi, this is delicious! If I had known that you can cook so well, I would have bugged you to cook more often for me."

Kakashi took a swig of his beer before replying. "I'm just full of surprises, now, aren't I?" he teased. "Speaking of surprises, where's my treat?" he asked as he took another bite of his dinner.

"Greedy, are we?"

"Very," he said as he gave her a fierce gaze that made that pulse between her legs return full force.

"Well you can have it after dinner. But I'll give you a hint: it's something sweet."

There was something so entertaining about teasing a man like Kakashi. The best part was, that he was teasing her back, as though he was enjoying the game just as much as she was.

"That's not a good clue. Give me another clue," he challenged.

"Hmm... Fine. It's sweet and juicy." She watched as Kakashi shifted in his chair, as if he suddenly was uncomfortable. Or perhaps her teasing had finally got to him, and she was getting a rise out of him like she wanted.

Kakashi couldn't help his eyes as they shifted to where her lap would be, if the table hadn't gotten in the way of his view.

"I like sweet, and I definitely like juicy. I guess I'll just have to be patient and wait for my treat." His voice had dropped into a slightly lower register which sent goosebumps across her body.

It was Sakura's turn to shift in her chair. She subtly rubbed her thighs together, trying to release some of the tension that was building there.

Sakura couldn't help but begin to eat her dinner faster. She was so eager to get to the next part of their evening. However she looked up, and Kakashi was taking his sweet time with his dinner, savouring every bite.

While Kakashi couldn't help but slow down his eating. If he ate too fast, he'd have to get up and the evidence of her teasing would be on display for her. Even though he was wearing baggy pants, he didn't want her to get unnerved by seeing the erection that she had caused. The subtle line of playing that was going on between them was perfect, but if she found out how easily she made him hard, he worried that that would be too much for this evening's games. So he just slowed down and enjoyed his favourite dinner with a woman whom he enjoyed spending time with.

It wasn't long before Sakura finished everything on her plate.

"That was perfect, Kakashi! Thank you for making me dinner." She rested for a bit while Kakashi finished his dinner. Once he finished his plate, he relaxed back into his chair and watched Sakura as she fidgeted.

"You're not really used to relaxing are you? Do you even know how?"

"Yes, I know how to relax, and I do it sometimes. But while I'm awake, I tend to just be on the go all the time." Since she couldn't resist anymore, she started organizing dishes to bring up to the counter. "You cooked, so at least I can help clear the table." She moved as efficiently in his kitchen as hers, going back and forth gathering all the plates and food and bringing them to the counter.

He was still more interested in the treat that she brought him than watching her cleanup the kitchen. And now that his not-so-little problem had been quelled for the time being, he quietly got up and stalked her into the kitchen.

Sakura didn't seem to notice Kakashi's presence until it was too late. He had cornered her against the counter, not even giving her enough space to turn around without pressing against him.

"I'm ready for my treat now," he declared. She could feel his breath against the edge of her ear—it sent shivers down to her toes.

Though she was blocked from moving away from him, luckily the treat she brought for him was in her bag that was resting on the counter.

Sakura looked over her shoulder and out of the corner of her eye, knowing that the man behind her couldn't see the confident grin on her face. "Okay, I guess I can give you your dessert now, since you've been so sweet to make me dinner." She stretched forward, bending at the waist—even though she didn't need to—and brushed her butt against his front. She heard his sharp intake of breath, but she didn't give him time to react. She took his treat out of the bag and turned around.

Sakura looked up to his dark charcoal eyes, which were bearing down at her for her brazen gesture. She smiled and presented him with a peach. "For you. Something sweet and juicy." She grinned arrogantly. She knew that he had expected her to give him a different type of treat, so she was happy when the peach caught him off guard. She watched as his eyebrows raised and his hand slowly reached for the peach.

"Now where did you come across one of these this time of year?" he said in disbelief. It was at least four months too early for peaches. He gently brushed his fingers across the soft fuzzy texture of the fruit. He brought it up to his nose to smell the delicious scent. It smelled like summer and it brought to him vivid memories of sitting outside, reading and enjoying the warmth of a summer's day.

"The greenhouse where many of the medicinal herbs are grown also has a peach tree in it, and a few of the peaches have ripened. They're delicious when they're ripe like this one."

Without waiting to be prompted, Kakashi bit into the juicy peach while still blocking Sakura from leaving her spot against the counter.

Her cheeky attitude slipped away as she watched him enjoy the juicy peach that she had brought for him. He slurped as he gently bit the peach once more. A drop of juice slipped from his mouth down his chin, but he caught it on his finger before it could slip down.

"Mmmm...you're right. This is delicious." He slipped his finger in his mouth and sucked on it for a quick second. "Delicious but messy. And I don't want to waste a single drop of the treat you brought me."

Once again, that pulse between her legs returned as she watched him tease her. She really hadn't thought that the night would turn this sexual with just a peach. However, she should have known better, as the man could probably make _any_ situation provocative and enticing—just look at his typical reading material. It was a never-ending wealth of stimulating ideas.

Sakura was compelled to watch him eat the peach since he still refused to budge. Bite after bite, slurp after slurp, he was working her into a frenzied state. A few more drops escaped his mouth, and she was just barely able to hold herself back from pressing forward and licking them herself.

She had to remember that tonight wasn't about crossing any lines, just pressing right up to that line with her full body. Sakura was doing everything in her power to appear calm, cool and collected, but the reality was that she was having trouble standing on her own. She leaned heavily against the counter, pressing her thighs together tightly to try to keep her scent to herself—because she knew that it wouldn't be long before he caught on to how aroused she was.

She gathered her confidence and tried to address him without sounding like a nervous, stuttering virgin. She'd done seduction missions before, so all she had to do was tap into her inner temptress and talk to him as if she hadn't spent the past 5 minutes imagining him using that tongue on her.

She placed her hands on his muscular chest, and gave a gentle push. "You know, we haven't heard anything from your pack for quite a while now. Maybe we should check on them." She could feel his heart hammering against her hands. She wondered if he knew her heart was beating just as fast.

Kakashi took the last chunk of the peach off of the pit and tossed the pit into the sink. He licked his fingers clean, keeping his eyes on the woman before him. From the moment she came into his apartment, he could smell how aroused she was. The fact that she was pressing her legs together, trying to stifle her lustful scent, was pointless.

"Hmmm... you're right. They have been surprisingly quiet." He swallowed once more, and he saw her watching his Adam's apple bob. "Why don't you go check on them while I finish cleaning up here."

He still didn't move away from her and the counter, instead he reached for her chin and tilted her head up and slightly off to one side. He gently pecked her on her cheek, then stepped away. It all happened so fast, Sakura almost wasn't even sure it happened.

"Mmm...the cherry on top. Thanks for the delicious treat. Sorry I didn't share any with you." He was standing off to one side with a sexy smirk on his face. It was times like these that she wished he still wore his mask around her, as his grin didn't help slow the throb in her body.

She pushed herself away from the counter and stumbled out of the kitchen. She wasn't sure if he was watching her or not, but she stopped at the table, grabbed her beer, and gulped the rest down. She heard a chuckle behind her, and she turned her head to look over her shoulder and Kakashi was indeed watching her. She smiled at him, placed the empty beer back down and walked into the living room.

The pack perked up when she walked closer to them. All of their tails started thumping against the ground the further she moved into the middle of the room. The moment she knelt down amongst them, they pounced on her like they did the treats she brought them earlier. They scrambled around her to get her to scratch bellies and ears that needed a good rub.

"You guys are all bark and no bite, aren't you," she laughed.

"No one can resist a good scratch, even the toughest of ninken," Pakkun said in delight as she hit the good spot on his ear that he had trouble reaching himself. It was such a good scratch that his back leg even started to thump against the floor. Uhei pushed forward and flopped on his back showing that he wanted his belly rubbed while Guruko came up and sat in her lap. One by one the dogs took turns with Sakura.

When Kakashi came upon her in his living room, she was sitting on the ground, feet almost touching his ancient couch, dogs completely surrounding her. It was a rather serene picture, one that so rarely graced his home. It brought a calm to his mind and a smile to his face. He sat down on the ground, resting his back against the couch, and watched the woman play with his pack before him. The feeling that it invoked in him pulled at his heartstrings until he pushed those emotions back down again. Now was not the time or the place for such thoughts.

He was brought out of his musings when Sakura's feet brushed against his thigh. He looked down at the petite things that wiggled at his side.

"Your feet are so tiny," he chuckled. He dragged a finger down the sole of one and enjoyed as she squirmed and kicked to get away from his ticklish fingers, laughing all the while.

"My feet are not small. They're just perfect for me." She looked towards his feet and grabbed his big toe. "It's yours that are huge!"

Kakashi grabbed her by the ankle, and dragged her a little closer towards him. "My feet aren't huge. They're just proportionate to the rest of me," he smiled cheekily at her, while bobbing his eyebrows up and down.

Sakura laughed at his innuendo while she jokingly struggled to get her foot out of his grip. However he didn't let go, instead his gripped firmed with one hand on her ankle until she settled, while his other hand pressed a thumb up questioningly as he seemed to concentrate on the foot in his hands.

"Relax. It's just a foot rub." His voice was deep with intention as both of his thumbs rubbed up the sole, pressing into tired spots, between toes and on the ball of her foot. His large, capable hands made easy work of her tired foot, which had her melting into the floor.

He wasn't sure what had inspired him to give her a foot massage, but it was a little too late to stop now. Kakashi could tell that she was also trying to understand what was going on, but he didn't want to think too hard about it. He just worked her little feet until she was a puddle on the floor, enjoying the extra delight he gave her. The dogs had more or less settled down, after they subtly picked up on the actions of the two humans.

After spending a good ten minutes on her first foot, he gently placed it in his lap and reached for the other. While it looked like Sakura had fallen asleep, he knew that she hadn't. She was just so relaxed and enjoying the treat.

"Dinner and a foot massage? I need to win spars against you more often. You're wonderful at that," she said blissfully.

"Oh, am I good at this?" he asked smugly as he pushed deeper into her foot, massaging a sore spot that she didn't even know that she had.

"Mmm...very good." She was nearly moaning in pleasure with how amazing it felt to have a man touching her, even for a semi-innocent foot rub.

"I am known for being _very_ good with my hands." Problem is that there was nothing innocent about Kakashi. "I also give great back rubs," he said tantalizingly.

"I bet you do." As good as Sakura was feeling, and as tempted as she was to let him continue to massage other parts of her, she wasn't about to let the evening get out of hand. He must have picked up on her intentions, because before long, he placed her other foot in his lap, joining her first foot.

"All done now—and now you know what it's like to truly relax."

Sakura just smiled and kept her eyes closed.

Kakashi carefully looked at the woman in front of him. He was trying his best not to change his position and end up leaning over her and pressing his hard body into hers. He was turned on by her little noises when he pushed into the sore spots on her feet. Her soft skin, her petite feet, the subtle blush on her cheeks—he felt a physical need to be closer to her. He was so tempted to take it a step further. Whatever was going on between them, he just wanted more—right now. It had been a while since he'd lain with a woman, Sakura was obviously feeling a similar desire for him, and it would only take a second to adjust their positions.

Slowly, Sakura's eyes opened—she was feeling so relaxed and slightly intoxicated. She saw Kakashi's half-lidded lustful gaze that matched her own feelings. She could almost read his mind, as his body language was obvious enough.

He looked as if he was ready to pounce on her. However, those were not her intentions for the night, and she would make sure that he understood that.

She grinned and stretched her body out, pushing both of her feet into his abdomen and reaching her arms above her head. With her feet against him, it stopped him from making any advances.

"Thank you, Kakashi, for the delicious dinner and the wonderful foot massage. But I need to head home before I fall asleep here." She slowly stood up, still continuing stretching out in front of him.

Kakashi was a little surprised at the sudden change between them. He knew that she was aroused, and he didn't need his sense of smell to determine that. He easily recognized the lust in her eyes—but her abrupt tempering confused him.

Until he saw the smirk on her face—she was teasing him, keeping the sexual tension between them at a peak.

Sakura held out her hand to him, to help him up. He took it, stood up and kept her hand clasped in his larger one for a brief second before letting go, but not moving away.

He smirked back at her, as he reached out and placed a hand under her chin and tilted her head back. "We can't have that, now can we?" If she was planning on leaving him in the state he was in, he was going to make sure that she was going home as riled as he was feeling.

He brushed his thumb just under her soft pink lips. He saw the shiver that flushed down her body and her tongue darted out to wet her lips in anticipation. Kakashi was having a hard time removing his eyes from those lips, he couldn't help wet his own when she began to nibble on hers.

With a deep breath, the silver-haired man took a half-step back, dropping his hand from her chin and plastered a big smile on his face.

"I hope you get a restful night's sleep. Sweet dreams." He reached out and tucked the hair behind her ear.

The only thing that Sakura was going to dream about, was the sexy man before her. She straightened, closed her mouth and smiled.

"Thanks, I'm sure I will have good dreams. Goodnight Kakashi." She took one look back as she moved to the balcony window and leapt away into the night.

* * *

Again, thank you for reading, enjoying and reviewing. 


	8. Chapter 8: Something Tipsy

Thank you to my lovely beta reader, **TipsyRaconteur** who keeps putting up with my crazy stuff. A special thanks to **KellersMcKellerton**! This one is for you!

And thank you so much to all of those who have read and reviewed. Each review I receive puts a smile on my face, and I'm especially grateful for receiving them when the days are hard-and there's been a few of those lately. So your reviews help me so much.

So thank you!

* * *

Sinking into the old wooden seat, Kakashi enjoyed his sake while his friends chatted. Genma, Tenzo and Gai had showed up at his apartment earlier and had convinced him that it was past time for a social night out. He wasn't much for a rowdy drinking event, but he was thankful for spending time with his friends, even if he more or less kept to himself.

Gai was boisterous as always about youthful vigor; Tenzo sat quietly, slowly drinking his sake, laughing awkwardly at Gai's antics. While Genma was goading on their green clad friend, telling stories of the beautiful woman he was trying to woo.

Kakashi soaked in the joyful atmosphere.

It wasn't a large bar, but it was nearly packed. His group had grabbed a booth at the far side. Servers kept the constant flow of sake and appetizers coming their way—which kept him and his friends happy.

They had been there for a few hours already, retelling old stories and enjoying the camaraderie.

It was at this point when Kakashi noticed a familiar head of pink hair. She seemed to be sitting alone at the bar, drinking cup after cup of sake.

It had been two nights since she had been over at his place for dinner and the impromptu foot then, he had dreamed of her both nights, unable to shake her from his thoughts. However, he wasn't sure if he wanted her from his thoughts.

When he looked over at her once more, Kakashi could tell something was off. But rather than immediately heading over to her and disturbing her peace, he quietly observed her for a while. She just sat, drinking her sake. Cup after cup. Bottle after bottle.

Tenzo noticed what Kakashi was looking at. "She seems upset, senpai. You should check on her."

Kakashi was slightly surprised with Tenzo's observation, but had already planned on checking up on her. But, he hadn't realized that he had been caught staring at her.

It wasn't like Sakura to appear so dispirited. As a child, that was a common thing for her to be moody whenever it concerned her love life, but as an adult, she was usually so full of confidence and optimism.

"Ahh. It does seem odd for her to be here drinking alone," Kakashi murmured, watching her raise another cup to her mouth.

The stool beside her vacated and Kakashi saw his opportunity.

"Excuse me, gentlemen." Without looking at his friends, Kakashi got up and left his friends.

Gai and Genma started to protest, when Tenzo did what he could to distract their friends from his departure.

Kakashi quietly sat down at the bar and got the bartender's attention to order more sake.

"Sakura," he greeted quietly.

"Kakashi," she acknowledged his presence, but she didn't continue to converse. She was not feeling overly talkative or sociable this evening.

She drank her sake quietly—cup after cup. Kakashi matched her, drink for drink, as they sat there in silence for close to half an hour. The bar itself wasn't silent with the constant hum of people talking and drinking with their companions. Kakashi didn't want to pressure her into talking about what was obviously bugging her. He knew that the presence of a friend can sometimes be enough after a rough day. Like what she has done for him not that long ago.

Sakura had mastered her own body years ago, and had the ability to drink without getting drunk. The ability to kick her metabolism up to neutralize alcohol was child's play for her. But that wasn't her goal tonight. The goal was to drink until she could forget her horrible day.

She finally broke the silence between them. "What were you doing when you were 13?"

Kakashi paused as he moved his cup of sake closer to his mouth. It wasn't what he had expected Sakura to say, but he answered truthfully.

"I had just become a Jounin and was working towards joining ANBU that same year. I was running missions prior to the war breaking out. But things were different when I was 13."

Sakura drained her cup, and poured herself another. She filled his cup at the same time.

"I was a new genin, and was under your supervision when I was 13," Sakura recollected. She downed another cup and refilled it once again.

Kakashi nodded and drank his sake, waiting to see if she would continue talking.

"A genin came into the hospital today caught up in a tangled jutsu. It didn't seem to be dangerous at first, so we didn't rush. We asked questions to determine what happened, so that we could treat him properly." Sakura shot back her sake with an unsteady hand. Kakashi reached over and filled her cup this time.

"A second later he was violently shaking and coughing up blood and then he started crying that he was scared because he didn't want to die. He continued to cry as we tried to save him, when his eyes rolled back to his head and his heart stopped."

Sakura shifted her head forward, allowing her hair to fall and cover her face. She swirled the sake in her cup, watching the clear liquid move in the cup.

"He was just 13. He had his whole life ahead of him."

Kakashi all too well understood that death was a large part of the ninja lifestyle. It didn't get easier over time, and it angered him the most when it was a pointless death. Especially the death of one so young.

A group of newly-graduated jounin had joined the bar and had become rowdy, cheerful and excited about their new status. Their loud and noisy laughter seemed to put the medic on edge.

Standing up, Kakashi put down enough money to cover the alcohol they had drunk and put his hand on Sakura's shoulder encouraging her to stand up as well. She finished her sake and stood up without too much thought. It was a normal thing for her to wordlessly follow his lead.

Meandering through the crowded bar, Kakashi led Sakura out. Once they got outside, the quietness compared to inside was almost deafening. Kakashi dropped his hands to his sides and began a slow walk down the street—their direction vaguely pointed towards where Sakura lived.

Sakura felt the sake finally catching up to her, but she did her best to follow beside Kakashi as they walked away from the bar.

Kakashi noticed her slow pace and her general drunkenness and slowed his pace to match hers. He had, after all, drunk enough as well, and was starting to feel the effects.

Sakura stumbled on the uneven cobblestone pathway. Kakashi turned and caught her before she could hurt herself, putting an arm around her waist and another around her shoulders, and pulled her back into his chest.

"I think it's time to get you home and in bed," Kakashi said gently to her. "Up you go," he said as he picked up and brought her to his chest.

Sakura allowed herself to be coddled by Kakashi. It was nice to not have to make decisions about what to do next.

"I'll get you home, so you can sleep it off," Kakashi said.

Sakura grasped his shirt, and shook her head. "...I don't want to...I can't be…" she started to whisper, her voice catching with each word.

_Be alone,_ he thought. He understood how she was feeling. People like himself preferred solitude when mourning the harsher aspects of their lifestyle, but people like Sakura craved human contact.

"Okay." He turned towards his apartment. His place was further away than hers, but it wouldn't take longer than 15 minutes to walk to his place.

Kakashi wasn't one for heartfelt words, but he was uncomfortable seeing her being so down.

"Sakura, I have no words of wisdom that can cure how you feel right now. But I'm sure you did everything in your power to save that boy. Accidents are common in our line of work. You have saved hundreds of lives before now and you will go on to save hundreds or thousands more. You're a good medic—don't ever doubt that." Without looking down at her, he could tell that she was considering his words.

She grasped his shirt tighter and adjusted her position slightly. She moved her face to the crook of his neck. He could feel her hot breath against his masked jaw line and it sent tingles down his body.

"Thank you," she breathed, closing her eyes and relaxed in his arms.

* * *

"Sakura... Sakura," Kakashi murmured to her. "I need to put you down to open the door." She had fallen asleep on their walk home. He lowered his arms allowing her to slide down his body until she gained purchase on her feet. She was turned so that she was facing him, and her head was tucked against his chest.

With one arm around her shoulders, he opened the door with his other hand. He walked forward which forced her to walk backwards, but his grip on her steadied her as she was moved into the apartment. He closed the door behind him, and bent down to remove his shoes.

With Kakashi kneeling down Sakura felt odd by being taller than him. It felt unnatural to be standing over the silver-haired man. It was obvious that her drunken mind wasn't working at its full capacity as she thought about the man on his knees before her.

After he had taken off his shoes, he placed a hand behind her knee and gently raised her leg off the ground. She reached forward and placed her hands on his shoulders to steady herself.

He gently undid her shoes, one at a time, running his hands down her calves to slip her shoes off. Sakura shivered at the contact. It wasn't meant to be sexually charged, but it felt a little more than just harmless.

Without saying anything he stood up, looked down at her for a second before continuing to his kitchen. She took a few steps to follow him, but stopped in his living room. With the amount of alcohol in her system, everything was spinning.

Kakashi reappeared with a glass of water in his hands. He offered it to her, and gave her two pills as well. Without question, she took the pills and sipped at the water.

"Finish the glass," he instructed.

Sakura knew how to take care of herself, but it was nice to have someone else who wanted to take care of her.

She tipped her head back and finished the glass and Kakashi took it and returned to the kitchen. He filled it once more and walked past her to his bedroom, still holding the full glass. She assumed that he wanted her to follow him there, so she slowly trailed after him, reaching out to furniture and walls as she moved. When she entered his room, she saw him opening a drawer and pulling out a light long sleeved shirt.

"I don't really have anything that will fit you, but at least you should be comfortable in this." He handed her the shirt, and left the room to give her some privacy.

She shrugged out of her clothes and bra leaving on only her underwear. She stopped for a second, trying to allow her brain to catch up to what was going on. She knew Kakashi wouldn't take advantage of the situation, but that didn't necessarily mean that she wouldn't attempt to take advantage of him in her drunken state.

The past few weeks had only intensified her attraction to him and pushed the boundaries of their friendship. It did not help that alcohol usually brought out the more lustful side of her. She often spent all day taking care of others—and she enjoyed her job immensely—but some days, like today, it was emotionally exhausting to be constantly needed by others. It rarely allowed her own needs to be prioritized.

She reached for the shirt, and had just started to put it on when Kakashi came back into the room. Her back was to him, but he still caught her standing in his room, in just her black lace underwear. She shrugged the shirt on, which came to the middle of her thighs, and turned around to look at Kakashi.

It amazed him greatly to see how much she had changed since he first met her. For fourteen years he'd watched her grow and become stronger both physically and mentally. He'd be the first to admit how aggravating she was as an early teen. However, she was no longer that annoying little girl. Sakura had grown into one of the most sought-after women and kunoichi of Konoha. And now she stood almost naked before him.

Kakashi had briefly debated his options. Either one of them takes the bed and the other takes the couch, or they both take the bed. She was the one who had made it clear that she didn't want to be alone tonight, so he decided that they would share the bed. He was not about to make her feel uncomfortable by forcing intimacy on her, but he was going to be there for her if and when she needed him.

"Get into bed. I'll be right back." He grabbed a pair of pajama pants for himself and grabbed her dirty laundry and brought them out of his room. He smelled of smoke and alcohol from the bar, which irritated his overly-sensitive nose.

He entered the bathroom, dropped her laundry, and removed his own clothing and had a quick shower. The apartment-sized washer/dryer combo was located behind the bathroom door and he tossed Sakura's and his own clothing in and set it to wash, then dry. He pulled on his pajama pants and towel dried his hair as he walked into his bedroom.

The bedside lamp was turned on and he saw Sakura curled up on the side where he normally slept. It had been a long time since he'd had a woman sleeping in his bed. Despite the reasons on how she ended up here, he was happy that she was there.

"Kakashi?" Sakura asked sleepily.

"Mmm?"

"Come to bed." She pushed herself closer to the edge and pulled back covers, showing him where she wanted him to be.

While she gave him enough room to fit in, the bed itself wasn't spacious. Over the years, he often spent less than half the time sleeping in his own bed, so he never bought a bigger one.

Kakashi threw the towel that hung around his neck at the chair and moved to the bed. He laid down on his back and stared up at the ceiling. He wasn't sure if he should talk or just try to fall asleep. For some reason, he felt that this was a more intimate situation than any other time he'd had a woman in his bed.

Sakura had been half asleep when Kakashi had reentered his room. As he crawled into his own bed, she could smell how clean and warm he was. She shifted so that she was still lying on her side facing Kakashi while he relaxed, staring up at the ceiling with his hands beneath his head, his chest exposed to the cool air.

Sakura didn't know how to break the silence, but she wasn't ready to settle to sleep just yet.

"Why did you join ANBU when you were so young?" Sakura asked quietly.

"It was what was required of me. I had no family to guide me, and war was threatening to break out. It was what was expected." Kakashi wasn't aiming for pity or remorse. These decisions occurred almost 30 years ago, and reflecting on the outcomes of these decisions was a moot point now.

"Go to sleep, Sakura." Kakashi reached over her and turned off the lamp, then shifted to get comfortable.

"Good night, Kakashi," Sakura mumbled. She moved around a few times trying to relax beside him.

Tentatively, she reached out and laid a hand on his chest, resting over his heart. She could tell that she caught Kakashi off guard with her hand, but he soon relaxed, and placed one of his hands on top of hers. "Go to sleep," he encouraged.

He finally heard her breath even out, and could tell that she had fallen asleep. Try as he might, it was a while before sleep claimed him. He knew he'd be having more dreams of a green-eyed woman in his bed tonight.

* * *

Kakashi came out of his sleep feeling groggy—and totally aroused. One deep breath and he smelled Sakura, slowly recalling what had transpired earlier that evening. She was shifting restlessly in her sleep. She had moved in her sleep, and rested halfway on top of him.

Her arm—that was previously resting on his chest—had snaked to his far side, and her face was pressed into his throat. He could feel her hot breath against his neck, and every once in a while, she'd brush her lips against his skin.

And that was the end of the more innocent portions of this situation.

The shirt that Sakura had borrowed had slipped to above her hips, baring her delicate lace-covered bottom. Her breasts were pressed firmly against his side, her right leg had swung up and crossed his thighs and would occasionally rub against his growing arousal. With her leg thrown across him, it pressed her lace-covered center against his hip. His right hand had moved of its own accord and grasped her bare thigh and was gently rubbing slow circles from knee to hip.

Kakashi couldn't stop himself from getting harder by the second. He closed his eyes tightly and took a deep cleansing breath, which didn't work all that well because all he could smell was her. His deep breath expanded his chest—Sakura's pillow—and caused her to adjust her position. She pushed her head further into his neck with a huff and tightened her grasp everywhere else. She pressed her core into him and gripped his hips with her leg that was wrapped around him.

_There's no good way to deal with this,_ Kakashi thought. _But at the same time, I am just a man_. _No one could stop themselves from getting hard with her grinding against me._

The internal battle waged on in Kakashi head. _No, she trusted me tonight to be a friend while she was upset. I can't take advantage of this situation_.

Kakashi gently lifted her leg that was splayed across him so that he could begin to extract himself from her grasp.

She woke up slightly, "Kakashi?"

"It's alright. I'll be right back," he whispered to her.

She hummed in approval and turned away from to rest on her other side, falling back asleep.

With a quick glance at her sleeping form, he reached over and pulled the sheet up to cover her.

Kakashi made his way to his bathroom, closed the door and flicked on the light. He rested both hands on either side of the sink, and tried to think about cold things. He turned the water on icy cold and splashed his face and neck. He wasn't fully erect, so thankfully he didn't need to subject himself to a cold shower, but he couldn't return to bed in the state that he was in.

Instead he thought about cold things. He thought about the things that he disliked the most: cold temperatures, writing mission reports, Gai jumping around in his green spandex suit. He breathed deeply in and out a few times to try to help calm him. It was starting to work.

He splashed more cold water on his face, neck and chest, hoping that when he returned to his bedroom, Sakura would be fast asleep. He dried off his hands and face and decided to attempt to get some more sleep.

Returning to his room, he saw that Sakura hadn't moved. She was still facing away from him.

He crawled back into bed, lying on his back again, trying not to disturb her. But he wasn't so lucky.

"Kakashi… cold..." she said half asleep.

He reached down to the foot of the bed and pulled the heavier shuriken blankets over her form. As he was pulling the blankets to her shoulders, she grasped his wrist and tugged at him.

"No… you…" she mumbled.

Kakashi paused, trying to come up with a way to deal with this dilemma. He knew that if he got physically close to her again, it would be obvious.

Physically.

But it seemed that Sakura wasn't about to take 'no' for an answer. She reached behind her and grabbed his hips and pulled. She must have put some chakra into her strength, because he soon lined her back with his front. Sakura moaned and pushed backwards into him and wiggled her hips against his pelvis, and it did him in.

Kakashi groaned. His hand snaked out and grabbed her hip bone and stopped her from wiggling more. His erection was back and it was getting harder by the second.

"Fuck…" Kakashi grunted under his breath.

Sakura gasped, fully awake now. "Kakashi," Sakura whispered with surprise. She could feel his erection pressed against her backside. She didn't think she'd have this type of effect on him tonight.

"What did you expect? You're practically naked and grinding against me, making little noises all while doing so." Kakashi groaned in her ear, without knowing that he was answering what her mind asked.

But he hadn't moved. He hadn't pulled her tighter against himself, nor had he moved his hips forward into hers, as he so desperately wanted to.

"I'm sorry," she whispered shyly.

"It'll go away. Just stop moving," Kakashi sighed.

Sakura didn't really know what to do. She hadn't imagined this would happen tonight. And sure, she knew she was going to end up sleeping with him. But not tonight.

She didn't want him to be uncomfortable in his own bed. She deviously knew how to fix the situation, but she was sure Kakashi would not appreciate her gesture.

"Don't hate me," she whispered uneasily. Kakashi eyed her warily as she reached behind her, going for the waistband of his pants. He watched her hand slip just underneath the rim of his pants.

Kakashi allowed himself to think dirty thoughts and let his head drop back, eyes rolling back and closed in the anticipation of pleasure that was coming his way.

Suddenly, the cool touch of her chakra entered his skin, and then his erection was gone. He jolted forward.

"What the hell! Sakura!" he exclaimed and pulled away from her.

He knew he had an erection a second ago, and now it was gone. Kakashi looked at her in disbelief. He reached down his own pants to make sure that everything was there and intact. It was. He was just completely soft.

Sakura laughed. "Kakashi, I didn't do anything to your penis. It's still there, just like normal. I just encouraged the redistribution of blood back to the rest of your body."

Sakura put her head back down to rest. Kakashi dropped his own head heavily on the bed.

"Not okay, Sakura," he sulked. There was no feeling of satisfaction like there was after sex.

"I'm sorry, Kakashi. I just didn't want there to be any pressure for either of us to have sex tonight. There will be other times for that."

"There won't be, if you treat my penis like that again. Please don't ever do that again," he stated.

He knew that he should be a little angrier with her for doing what she did, but it wasn't like he could do anything about it now—plus he did just come back from trying to get rid of his erection. He had wished for something very different would have happened between them, but at least that was better than an ice-cold shower. He was feeling more relaxed, regardless—he thought it must be her chakra. It was a little easier to get comfortable against her. He resumed his 'big spoon' position, feeling the tiredness suddenly upon him.

"I promise, I won't," Sakura said honestly.

"If you were uncomfortable with it, there's other ways to handle it," Kakashi mumbled.

"I wasn't really that uncomfortable with it. I wanted you close, but I didn't want to give you a case of blue balls." Sakura reached around and grabbed his hand and brought it to her front, and cradled it between her breasts.

"Stay away from my balls, too," he grunted in her ear, nuzzling her head. He obviously was still feeling some of the effects of the alcohol from earlier.

"I promise to only ever touch your testicles or penis in the future for pleasure. Okay? Can we go to sleep now?" Sakura promised with a chuckle. It was clear to her that Kakashi was completely falling asleep now that he didn't have to think about his erection.

"Fine. But you owe me," Kakashi said drowsily. He had pushed his nose into her hair and breathed deeply. She still smelled a little like the bar, but her own personal scent calmed and grounded him.

"I'll make it worth your while," she assured.

"Mmmmm… okay," Kakashi pulled her tight against him, and was out.

* * *

Kakashi moved restlessly in his own bed as daylight broke through his window. Something felt off, he thought. He could smell Sakura all over his bed and himself. When he reached out for her there was nothing there. He cracked open an eye and instantly shut it. He had made it through the night thinking that maybe, just maybe, all that alcohol he drank last night wouldn't have affected him enough to give him a hangover. But he wasn't so lucky. The headache was quickly forming behind his eyes and he was already sensitive to the small amount of sunlight in his room.

Thankfully, he wasn't feeling sick to his stomach. He just wanted to pull the blankets over his head and sleep for the next eight hours. The idea was enticing because it smelled so much like Sakura. He didn't normally feel his age, but he was feeling it this morning.

Suddenly, he heard some noise in his kitchen. He knew it was Sakura, but he thought that he should probably go investigate, to make sure that she didn't break anything.

It took him a full five minutes to get used to the sunlight and feel well enough to get to his feet. When he did finally stand up, that took another few minutes for the room to stop spinning before he made his way to the kitchen. It was entirely possible that he was still drunk.

Sakura was bent over, looking through his cupboards for something. The shirt he lent her barely covered her, and showed a hint of her black lace panties.

_Fuck, she has amazing legs,_ he thought as his head still throbbed. Too early for that yet. As much as he wanted the blood that was pounding in his head to subside, he didn't want it to go directly to his other head before he could fully wake up and enjoy the little display she was putting on.

Kakashi continued to watch her as he made his way to the table and slumped down quietly in the chair. He observed her putter in his kitchen, oblivious to his presence, since she seemed caught up in her own thoughts.

Sakura had woken up surrounded by Kakashi: his body, his warmth and his scent. She had spent the night with men before, but this felt different on so many levels. The emotions that she was trying to keep a rein on were getting harder to control. She couldn't lie to herself anymore—she wanted to wake up with him like this every morning. Plus, there was nothing innocent about his grip on her either—one hand snuggled between her breasts, while his other arm was used as a pillow for her head, and her own hand had reached out and linked fingers with his.

It was more intimate than she could handle so early in the morning, so she'd quietly slipped out of his bed and made her way into his kitchen to see what she could do about breakfast. As she rummaged through his refrigerator and cupboards, she caught a glimpse of something out of the corner of her eye, and jumped because the man who occupied her thoughts all morning suddenly appeared right beside her.

"Kakashi! You scared me!" Her hand went to her chest as if to stop her heart from jumping out of her skin.

The hungover ninja shrugged his shoulders and gave her a look as if to say that she should always expect the unexpected. Sakura looked back at him unimpressed.

"Haha, yes, I know that I'm a kunoichi and that I should be more aware," Sakura replied sarcastically. "Where is your coffee maker?" The cupboard door closed loudly and he winced. Apparently he was sensitive to loud noises too.

Kakashi took his throbbing head in his hands and rubbed his temples. "I don't have a coffee maker. Just a kettle and tea. It is in the cupboard to the left of the sink."

"Thanks." Sakura grabbed the kettle, filled it, and got it going. She looked back at Kakashi, who looked rather pathetic this morning.

"Are you okay? You look horrible," Sakura said, trying to be polite, but it was obvious that she was enjoying the fact that he had a horrible hangover. Even a bleary-eyed, hungover Kakashi was still something enticing to look at. He was slumped over in the chair, still wearing only loose-fitting pants. His elbows were resting on his knees and his head was cradled in his hands. His sculpted arms, shoulders and back were bare for her viewing pleasure—and he was a pleasure to look at.

"I'm too old to drink that much," he mumbled.

"I didn't realize the alcohol affected you that much. You didn't seem drunk last night," Sakura mused.

"I probably drank twice as much as you, but I don't really act differently when I'm drunk. I've had to learn how to act appropriately when drinking, especially for missions." Kakashi paused. "Why are you so chipper? How do you not have a hangover?" he accused.

Sakura retaliated and pointed to herself and said, "Medic," to explain it and grinned widely. The kettle finished boiling with a high-pitched whistle. The noise made Kakashi wince in pain. Sakura unplugged the kettle and poured the hot water into the mugs she had set out.

"Ugh," he said, since he couldn't form more of a sentence than that. His head was pounding too much for any more conversations and noise from the kitchen.

"I was going to make some sort of breakfast for you, but you really don't have much in your fridge right now. But I think I can make a basic okonomiyaki. I find that the protein from the eggs helps with hangovers. Don't you?" Sakura asked absentmindedly. She was making so much noise opening and closing cupboards and clanging pots and pans together. It was just about enough to kill him.

Sakura looked over to Kakashi to see him clutching his head in his hands. He looked absolutely pitiful.

"Okay, let me fix you up." She walked over to him and stood in front of him and reached for his head.

Kakashi eyed her for a second, but then let go of his head in order for her to take it in her hands. He briefly saw the soft green light of her chakra before he closed his eyes. Her cool chakra entered his body and he felt instant relief.

"That is a nasty headache you've got there, Kakashi. Light sensitivities, and I'd guess noise sensitivities, too," Sakura chided.

Kakashi groaned and pushed his head forward into her hands. The pain was melting away quickly.

She pushed her fingers into his hair and gave him a light head massage while her chakra finished fixing his headache. His head was almost leaning fully against her chest. His hands reached out and gripped the back of her thighs, pulling her towards him between his legs, not allowing her to stop making him feel so much better.

"Mmmmm…" Kakashi groaned and pushed his head the final inch, into her chest, feeling pure bliss as she removed all the pain from his head.

Sakura liked playing with his silver hair. The soft feeling of his hair threaded through her fingers. She enjoyed being this close to him. She was enjoying what was growing between them and did not want whatever this was to stop.

"You know, all you had to do was ask, and I would have fixed this right away for you. I don't like seeing you in any type of discomfort," she said quietly.

Kakashi could feel the vibrations of her voice. He knew that he should move his head away, since he was practically nuzzling her breasts, but she hadn't stopped massaging his head, so he assumed she was okay with where his head was positioned.

"Mmmmm…" Kakashi repeated. He couldn't think of anything better to say, since all coherent thoughts had left his brain. He still had his hands on the backs of her thighs, rubbing his thumbs just under where his shirt ended on her.

He sighed out of satisfaction when her chakra stopped, but her massage continued so he didn't move away. What she was doing to him felt like unadulterated bliss. Sakura was warm and comforting, and her scent now had his own intermingled with hers. He admitted to himself that he liked that new development.

"Thank you, Sakura. I feel much better now," he said into her stomach. "About last night…." Kakashi continued gently. Sakura's hands froze briefly. He didn't want her to stop, so he lightly pulled her legs towards him, pushing his head further against her. She smiled and picked up on his cue and started massaging his head again.

She took a deep breath before she spoke. "Kakashi, I'm sorry. It was very inappropriate of me to have abused my medical abilities on you. Especially in such a personal manner…" she trailed off.

Kakashi chuckled. "That's not what I meant by last night. But since you brought it up, don't worry, I guess I get it. I made an uncertain situation more awkward by getting aroused. I'm sorry that made you uncomfortable. As many jutsus as I can perform, like any other man out there, I can't even control parts of my own body." Kakashi chose not to bring up that she promised to make it up to him. He smirked internally and thought that he could save that little morsel of information for a more convenient time.

Kakashi continued, "What I wanted to talk about the events that occurred at the hospital." He was wary of bringing up a sensitive topic for her, but he wanted to make sure that she was okay.

Sakura deliberately started to massage the back of his head and a little of his neck, to continue to help him relax, and to show how grateful she was to him. "I wanted to thank you for that. I don't deal with death as a part of my job overly well. Thankfully, it doesn't happen often because we have such a good team there. However, when it does, I just need a night to drink the pain and weariness away and just wallow for the night. Sometimes by next morning I'm feeling better, other times I need another day of wallowing. Although, because of you, I feel much better today. I know it's not the best way to handle things, but I am only human."

Kakashi pulled his head back to look up to her. He wanted to see her face to make sure that she was truly feeling better. She looked a little tired, and her hair was messy from sleep, but the smile on her face reached her eyes and it was genuine.

"Good," Kakashi said. The look in his eyes changed from kindness and concern to one of intensity. He stood up slowly, not removing his hands from her thighs, but allowing them to drag up her thighs, over her butt and ending on her hips. While her hands, which were tangled in his hair, shifted from his hair, to the sides of his head, then to his neck and shoulders and finally stopping on his chest.

Kakashi ducked his head down to her ear and neck and whispered, "I'm glad to hear I could help." His hot breath sent shivers down her spine and right to her core. Sakura found it surprising how easy her emotions could switch from carefree to arousal by the man before her.

Even with him leaning over, Sakura was still so much shorter than him. She stood on her tippy toes to get closer, and to allow him better access to her. Suddenly Kakashi was reaching down to her butt, and he picked her up and settled her at his waist and encouraged her legs to wrap around him. Her lace-covered core was against his abdomen, and he was pulling her tightly against himself. With her new height, she was now a head taller than him.

Kakashi started nuzzling her jaw line and her neck, while she threw her head back and took in a startled breath. Her arms clinging to his shoulders as his mouth found how erogenous her body was.

Sakura moaned when he started placing open-mouthed kisses on her neck and suckling on her ear. She had her legs firmly wrapped around his waist, so that he didn't need to support her. Kakashi moved his hands along her thighs, and when he got to her ass he squeezed and pulled her against himself. His hands continued their exploration of her body, moving under her shirt and trailing against her ribs.

Suddenly, there was a knock at the door. Sakura froze, but Kakashi continued his exploration. "Just ignore it. They'll go away," he said heatedly against her neck.

"Oi! Kakashi! I know you're in there! We've been called to the Hokage's office." The pair could immediately tell that it was Genma, since he had such a distinctive drawl to his voice.

Sakura laughed and grasped Kakashi's head and gently pulled it back, which stopped his delicious attack on her neck. "You better go answer the door." Her eyes had a devious twinkle in them, knowing that he was hard again and she was leaving him hanging. "I'll put away the stuff I got out for making okonomiyaki."

Kakashi was reluctant to let her go. "You know, I've felt the majority of your body, you slept in my bed, manhandled my erection and offered to make me breakfast, but I have yet to kiss you on the lips. We could just ignore him and we can continue," Kakashi said in an attempt to persuade her.

Sakura laughed, "The first time I'm going to kiss you, I won't be rushed for time. Now go answer the door before Genma invites himself in."

Kakashi unwillingly let her descend down the front of him. With a wink, she skittered further into the kitchen before he walked to the front door. She didn't want to give Genma a free show with what she was wearing.

Prior to opening the door, he pulled a spare mask from one of the stashes that he had around his apartment and Kakashi slipped it on. With one last glance at Sakura puttering in the kitchen, Kakashi sighed and opened the door.

"Took you long enough. Did I catch you in bed or something with a pretty lady?" Genma laughed jokingly. Then he heard rattling in Kakashi's kitchen and stared at Kakashi in shock. "You DO have someone here! Anyone I know?" Genma probed.

"Go away," Kakashi demanded.

"Aww, come on Kakashi, I'm just happy for you," Genma replied teasingly. Genma tried to come into the apartment, but Kakashi wasn't going to have any of that. "I should be polite and introduce myself," Genma protested.

"There's no need for you to introduce yourself. What does Naruto want?" Kakashi pressed.

Genma was still trying to look around Kakashi and see who was in the kitchen. "We have a mission. We're to go to the Hokage's office as soon as possible."

"Fine. I'll be there shortly. Now leave," Kakashi said rather forcefully.

Knowing that Kakashi wasn't purposefully being an ass, and that he just liked to keep his private life private. But Genma was also a longtime friend and was really curious who Kakashi brought home with him. Then he saw a dash of pink hair and his eyes widened.

Genma stood agape while Sakura walked from the kitchen to Kakashi's bedroom wearing only one of his shirts. "Good morning, Genma," Sakura called. "I'll do my best to get Kakashi there soon."

Kakashi sighed—so much for keeping that quiet. Kakashi watched as Sakura disappeared into his bedroom, and he turned his gaze back to Genma.

Genma had the stupidest grin on his face. "I'm not going to even bother to explain this to you. Just get out," Kakashi ordered as he pushed Genma out of his apartment.

"But I have questions! I want to hear—" Genma would have continued but Kakashi pushed Genma out of his apartment by placing a hand over his face and pressed him backwards. "Oi! Kakashi, we have that meeting!"

Kakashi locked the door and turned away from it and followed Sakura to his bedroom. When he entered, he saw her staring at his squad photos. The one from when Yondaime was his sensei, and then the one with Kakashi, Naruto, Sasuke and herself. It made her nostalgic.

"I, uh, put your clothes through the wash last night. All of your clothes and gear are in the washroom." Kakashi said quietly. He moved to sit on the edge of his bed, and watched her.

Sakura looked over her shoulder and smiled. "How very domestic of you, Kakashi," Sakura teased. "Thank you." Sakura moved to stand before him. "Shouldn't you be getting ready for your meeting with Naruto? I'm sure Genma doesn't want to wait around forever." She reached forward and placed one hand on his shoulder.

"Are you trying to get rid of me?" he looked up at her and asked.

Sakura laughed, "Of course not, but I can't encourage you to be late. It's a bad habit of yours," she said with a wink.

"I'm too old to start changing now. I think the old saying of 'you can't teach an old dog new tricks' applies to me."

Sakura moved her hand from his shoulder to the edge of his mask and began to pull his mask down. "Nobody could ever call you old if they saw your face. You have such a young face," Sakura commented quietly. Her fingers trailed across his face.

Kakashi took her hips in his hands and lifted her shirt off of one of her hips. "Sakura… nobody will mind if I'm a bit late..." He moved his head forward and started placing kisses along her hip and anyplace else he exposed.

Kakashi was nearly drunk on her scent. It didn't take much to get him worked up, or even to get Sakura worked up too. He heard Sakura try to suppress a moan. Every inch of her body was so responsive to his touch. He continued to kiss her hip, as his hand slid to the waistband of her underwear and slowly pulled it askew. His lips followed where his hands traveled.

With Kakashi's first few kisses along her hips, she could feel his warmth spread through her and incite her desire for him. It sent a shiver up her spine, stretching out and hardening her nipples, and shot back down to her core and pulsed there while he explored.

"Kakashi, wait. Don't you hear that?" Sakura asked briefly coming out of her lust-induced haze.

There was a light tapping on the glass of his window. A little canary was sitting on the ledge of the window, singing and tapping on the glass. "Kakashi… I'm being called to Hokage's office as well. And unlike you, I don't like being late," Sakura sighed and took Kakashi's head in her hands, moved it away from her hips and kissed the top of it. "To be continued…"

Kakashi gave a frustrated grunt and flopped back onto his unmade bed.

"If you don't mind, I'm going shower real quick before heading over to see Naruto."

Kakashi tilted his head up to look at Sakura. "I could wash your back… and any other part that you can't reach?" he asked enticingly.

Sakura laughed. "You're insatiable." She shook her head. "But no, not this time. When we have a whole day to ourselves, sure, we can go fool around in the shower."

Kakashi stared at her for a second. "What happened to the shy Sakura who got a nose bleed from Naruto's reverse sexy-no-jutsu?"

Sakura laughed again, "She got self-confidence."

"That's it?" Kakashi asked.

"Ha! Women need only one thing to thrive in the ninja world: self confidence. Self confidence in our intelligence, self confidence in strength, self confidence in our beauty and self confidence in our sexuality. Once we have mastered those, anything we put our mind to is possible," Sakura said with a wink. "If you'll excuse me, I need a shower." Kakashi stared at her as she left the room.

After a minute, Kakashi could hear the shower running. He flopped back down on the bed, pondering what was going on between them. He could no longer evade the obvious; he not only decided that he was attracted to her, but that he was going to have her. The next time it was just the two of them, he'd take the next step. Until then, he'd just have to wait and store his lustful thoughts.

Kakashi sighed and stood up. It was time to get changed and go find out what Naruto wanted.

* * *

Thank you again everyone who has reviewed! They really do make my day!

Take care in this uncertain time. Be Kind, Be Patient and Be Safe. This too will pass.


	9. Something Scary

Thank you to my lovely beta reader, TipsyRaconteur who keeps putting up with my crazy stuff and has always been there for me as a friend as well as a beta.

And thank you so much to all of those who have read and reviewed. Each review I receive puts a smile on my face, and I'm especially grateful for receiving them when the days are hard-and there's been a few of those lately. Your reviews help me so much. So thank you!

* * *

Sakura walked down the hallway towards Naruto's office when she heard someone call out her name. She turned to see Genma strolling towards her. He stopped in front of her, forcing her head back as she looked up at his face.

His lips curved in a big smile. "Ohh, I see how it is. Arriving at a different time than Kakashi to make it look like you didn't sleep with him last night. Smooth," Genma chortled while winking at her.

"Genma, not that I owe you an explanation, but you've got it wrong. Kakashi was just being a good friend to me," she said dismissively, resting one hand on her hip while waving her other hand in the air between them.

A group of kunoichi walked by them, chatting loudly; thankfully, Genma kept his comment low enough so that only Sakura could hear. "Oh I'm sure he's a _real good_ friend." He tried to nudge her, but she caught his arm before he could move any further. Compared to Sakura, Genma was much larger than she was, however, with her enhanced strength and sharp look, she was able to wipe the smile off his face.

"Genma, stop being crude." She gave his arm a good chakra-aided squeeze, guaranteeing that her point came across clearly. She kept a large smile plastered across her face, ensuring that anyone who walked by would be duped by the exchange.

He winced and then gasped from the pain in his arm—point received.

"Now let's go inside and not bring this up again, agreed?" She smiled charmingly at him. He nodded his head vigorously, while she opened the door and entered before the senbon-wielding man.

Naruto sat at his desk, while Shikamaru and Tenzo stood off to the side. The morning sun was already blazing through the windows, giving her childhood teammate a bit of an ethereal look. He roughly shuffled through papers, seemingly distressed, eyes flashing up when the medic and other brunet ANBU entered.

Before speaking, he looked around her and Genma, looking for their last partner. "Where's Kakashi?" he demanded irritably, rubbing a hand quickly through his hair.

"Right here," the man in question said as he walked through the door and moved to stand beside Sakura. She could feel his warmth and smell his freshly showered scent radiating from him. Naruto looked at the pair of them oddly for a brief second before jumping into the explanation of the mission.

"There is going to be an assassination attempt on the Kazekage within two days. We have sent notice of this and all the information that we have on the attempt to Gaara. We will, however, make sure that the rogue-nin do not get into Kaze no Kuni. They are traveling through Hi no Kuni to get to Gaara. We have too good of a relationship with them to fuck this up. We cannot allow the assassins to leave Hi no Kuni." Shikamaru passed Kakashi a scroll, while Naruto continued to explain. "This is all the information that we have on them. We believe that they are coming from Mizu no Kuni, whom we are trying to build relationships with, but they are being difficult. Kakashi, you are to take out the assassins subtly, assassinating them yourself, and you must make it impossible to track back to us. Due to the high-risk factor, Sakura has been assigned to this mission, but she is not to engage since her techniques are too distinctive. She is only there to make sure that the three of you come back alive."

The four-man team stood a little straighter once they heard the severity of the mission—all of them quickly being put on edge, their instincts taking over.

Naruto continued, his voice tense. "There is no room for error on this. Do not fail in this mission. Leave immediately. Dismissed."

Kakashi turned to his teammates. "Meet at the gate in 10 min. Sakura, dress in ANBU gear."

They had begun to disperse, when Naruto called out tentatively. "Sakura, hold back for a moment please."

The kunoichi watched as the rest of the team left immediately, as she turned to Naruto.

"Is there something else, Naruto?" His bright blue eyes were still the same from when they first met as children—so clear and sometimes so sharp.

"I don't know—I was going to ask you the same thing." He looked at her strangely. "Is everything okay?" he asked, trying to keep the question vague.

Sakura was confused, but she saw a flash of something behind his eyes. She tilted her head and addressed her longtime friend. "Everything is fine. I better get going. I would hate to be the last one to show up. Don't worry, Naruto, we'll take care of this, and nothing will happen to Gaara."

He nodded sullenly. "Make sure you come home too."

"Don't worry, I'll make sure we all come home safe and sound." Sakura smiled and left his office, quickly headed home.

She was briefly thrown by Naruto's question, but she couldn't stop and think about it—not right now, at least. She had under seven minutes to meet the team at the gates and she still had to dress in her barely used ANBU gear. She ran home at top speed, making it in under two minutes.

She always had a small pouch that was ready for missions like this one where she couldn't bring the typical pack. She dressed in the black pants and a skin-tight top with a grey flak jacket, arm and shin guards over top of her long gloves. Sakura also had an extra hood that she used to cover her vibrant hair. She expediently attached her pouches, grabbed her personalized ANBU mask, and headed out the window at full speed.

Her mask was a hound mask with two pointed ears at the top, and the design that was illustrated on it were black thick lines that originated from a diamond void in the center of the forehead. It was meant to replicate the seal markings when she released her Strength of a Hundred Seal.

Thankfully, Sakura made it to the main gates in time. She saw Genma and Tenzo already waiting. She knew that Kakashi wouldn't risk being late on such a critical mission. However, before she could even open her mouth to ask where he was, she felt his presence behind her.

"Let's get ready to go." It was all business with him. "In this order: Genma, Tenzo, Sakura and then I'll bring up the rear. Move out."

The team wasted no time in jumping into action.

* * *

From the moment they were released from Naruto's office, Sakura had felt the urgency surrounding this mission. Naruto was right—they couldn't afford to fail in this. There was a strict time limit on this mission and little room for error. They had barely let up their hasty pace to make it in time, pausing after 7 hours of intensive running, to make camp for a short time. They all needed to be at 100 percent for this endeavor, and so they needed rest before continuing.

They made no fire, ate rations and kept their presence masked. Each taking turns as lookouts throughout the night, Genma was first, then Tenzo, then Kakashi, and finally herself.

Even though she was supposed to be sleeping, she was having trouble turning off her brain. She was trying to process what had happened between her and Kakashi that morning. Waking up in Kakashi's bed, wrapped in his arms and scent—it sent a shiver through her, just remembering it.

Feeling the warmth and strength of his body, pressed alongside hers—it was nearly perfection. It was also very dangerous, since she knew that her feelings ran deeper than his. If she wasn't careful, she'd end up getting hurt while he just wanted a physical relationship, which is why she left his bed before he woke up. She hadn't wanted to get too used to something that she'd never get for the long run.

After another few minutes, Sakura had finally been able to quiet her mind and fell into a light sleep. But she knew that deep restful sleep would be impossible until she got home. She had confidence in the team to safeguard her while she slept, just as she would keep them safe while it was her turn to keep watch.

When Kakashi's shift was up he had crouched beside her, and begun the process of waking her up. She rested on her side, so when he placed his hands on her hip and gently trailed his hand up her side, her eyes sprung open.

"Sakura," he whispered in hushed tones by her ear. His breath fluttered against her face and sent a bolt of heat down through her stomach to her toes.

She rolled onto her back and looked up at Kakashi's charcoal eyes. She blinked a few times to clear her vision. He was staring so intently at her, which should have startled her, but it didn't. She knew he wanted to say something, but it was neither the time nor the place. It was obvious that he wanted another chance at what they had started the previous morning—so did she.

"I'm up," Sakura said, breaking eye contact with him. She sat up, but he hadn't moved back. He still sat crouched beside her. She turned her eyes to him briefly, but then continued to survey her surroundings. There was a low-hanging branch of a tree situated next to their camp, which was where each of them had taken up their sentry position. Sakura brought her feet underneath her to a crouched position beside him, winked at him and then flipped to the branch, landing perfectly.

Kakashi watched her position herself to exactly where he had just vacated. He repositioned himself to lay down in her bedding, but he was on his back, eyes fixated on her. Sakura briefly glanced at him again, but quickly averted her eyes as she continued to survey their surroundings. Kakashi had the luxury to spend time staring at her. He studied her lithe form, while she balanced on the branch.

The ANBU uniform that she sported had been altered to hide her distinct hair colour. However, the rest of her was dressed in the form fitting but typical ANBU style—which left little to the imagination. He had never noticed the symbolic tattoo on her arm before—but then again, he hadn't spent much time noticing her in the past. At least like how he was noticing her now.

He watched her for another few minutes, making sure she noticed his obvious focus. He wasn't trying to make her nervous, he just liked looking at her.

He thought briefly that this was probably why lovers weren't allowed on the same missions together—too many distractions. But they weren't lovers—yet. He would be sure to change that when they get back to Konoha.

Sakura noticed his constant gaze on her. It didn't bother her all that much. She kept her eyes off of him, but her mind would constantly shift back to him. Thankfully, it wasn't long before he shut his eyes to get some rest before the morning's light broke the horizon.

It left Sakura to do her job, and occasionally have her mind wander to thoughts of him. She looked down and saw that he slept like this was just another vacation. On his back, legs relaxed, hand supporting his head, and chest open to any attack. Maybe it was him just being cocky about his ability to protect himself, but maybe it was also a little bit of his trust in her. At least that's what she hoped.

* * *

Sakura paced back and forth. Every time she looked at Tenzo, she let out a huff, bitter with the situation. They were standing in a small opening in the forest—one that reminded her of where they had camped last night.

They waited behind while Genma and Kakashi had gone off to do the dirty work. This was Kakashi's plan, and Sakura wasn't entirely thrilled with it—mostly because she hated being left behind. It was a sore spot that originated from her childhood, and her issues with Naruto, Sasuke and even Kakashi himself. She was a fully capable kunoichi who stood beside her three other teammates and together they destroyed a goddess. But here she was waiting outside the main conflict zone, and it was eating at her.

Sakura broke from her mental rant as she heard a twig snap from a distance behind her. She quickly turned her head to look behind her at Tenzo. He had heard it too. They both reached into their pockets to draw a weapon of their choice.

In a flurry of movement, Genma broke through the forest weighted down with a heavily injured Kakashi. One quick look at him, and she wasn't even sure if he was conscious—or worse: alive.

"Sakura!" Genma called out harshly, startling her into moving towards them.

She quickly took charge of the situation. "Get him laying down now!" she demanded. She jumped to the pair of them with Tenzo only a half-step behind her. Sakura looked at Kakashi—he looked like a bloody rag doll, his ANBU mask clutched in his hand, with smears of blood across it. One side of his cloth mask was soaked a darker red which had continued down the rest of his ANBU uniform. He seemed to be a patchwork of burgundies and crimsons—a collection of dried and fresh blood. It made her both angry and terrified to see him like that.

"What's the status of the mission? Is it complete? Any complications?" Tenzo asked Genma. He was worried about his senpai; however, he had to leave Kakashi to the medic while Tenzo could only deal with the mission logistics.

"He completed it, but obviously there were complications. There's a chance we were followed," one brown-haired man said to the other.

That grabbed Sakura's attention. There was nothing good that could come from enemy shinobi finding them now—especially not while Kakashi was completely debilitated and vulnerable.

"Go! Both of you! Make sure that there is no trail and that you weren't followed. I need time with Kakashi to heal him." She already had assessed his obvious injuries: a deep cut to his neck that was still bleeding profusely, and his tibia was severely broken and ripped through his lower leg. He also seemed to be having some sort of breathing complications.

"Go!" she urged the men again, "I've got this."

With one last glance at the team medic and their injured friend, the pair of brunets left to go survey the forest to ensure that no one had followed them. They knew that they had to give her the time she needed in order to save Kakashi's life.

Sakura looked down at Kakashi to see that he was awake, but only barely. His eyes tried to follow her movements, and she could tell that he was in enormous pain. His eyes were sluggishly moving around, not having the ability to focus on anything specific—probably due to the significant amounts of blood loss. She slipped her hand under his mask and had it pressed to his neck to suspend the gushing blood slipping from his neck. If she wasn't quick enough to stanch the bleeding there, it would be what killed him. She still needed to address the fact that they were sitting ducks in enemy territory.

Her chakra flared as she pushed it deeper, faster and harder into him. Her hand was slick with his warm blood and she watched his eyes begin to flutter closed, as the lethargy took him over.

"Kakashi! Stay with me." His eyes were going in and out of focus, not having the strength for much more. It terrified her. "Look at me! I need your help." She hoped that his sense of duty would drag him back to consciousness. "We need to call your pack. I'm going to help you. But you need to think of them clearly. Think of them all," she guided gently.

With her opposite hand, the one not tending to his neck laceration, she took his right hand and she pushed her chakra into him. This time with a different purpose. She pushed and pulled a little of his own chakra, guiding it to the palm of his right bloody hand. She perfectly manipulated his chakra to summon his pack. In a burst of vapours, his main eight ninken appeared.

They were immediately on high alert since they could all smell their master's blood scenting the area. Pakkun appeared at her side, seeking some sort of update or affirmation that he was going to live.

"Pakkun, I need you and the others to monitor the area. Genma and Tenzo are out making sure that no one comes our way, but Kakashi needs my full attention."

"Of course. I knew something was up the second that I felt your chakra infused with his for the summon. Nothing will disturb you." Pakkun left her side to relay her message to the rest of the pack. They were a formidable group—especially when their master was injured. The loyalty of the pack was not to be underestimated.

Sakura looked back down at Kakashi's face, willing him to keep his dazed eyes on her.

"Look at me Kakashi. You're going to be okay. I'm not even opening the seal on my forehead." She watched him try to concentrate on her face. He slowly raised a shaky hand to her forearm.

When his ice cold hand made contact with her skin, his eyes widened in understanding. He hadn't realized how cold he had gotten in comparison to her. He was near death, and his overseer was doing everything she could to stop him from slipping away. He knew that this day would eventually come. He was human—and all humans die. Shinobi were familiar with brushes of death, and Kakashi knew he had flirted with death several times before. He couldn't help but feel fear creeping up from his stomach to his chest and terminating in his expression in his eyes. It wasn't helping that her worried emerald eyes bore into his. The panic from the fear clenching at his heart wasn't a benefit in this situation—there was nothing that he could do to save himself. It was all up to her and she was doing everything she could do.

She had looked away from his neck to look at his face and saw the fear in his eyes. His expression startled her. She wasn't about to let him die—she could and would save him—and she was going to make sure that he knew that.

"Kakashi. It's okay, you're going to be okay. We're going to go home and continue what we started yesterday morning," she said with conviction. She needed to quell his fears—she needed to try to calm him so that his heart wouldn't pump out that vital fluid any faster.

Slowly the warm blood pouring from his neck dribbled to a halt, as she pushed massive amounts of chakra into him, pulling and sealing arteries and blood vessels from the inside. Slowly closing off layer after layer of skin to stanch the life that slipped from the prone man before her.

Sakura hadn't lied to him when she said that she hadn't activated the seal on her forehead. However, she had other reserves that she had dipped into. If she didn't have those reserves, there might have been a chance that he wouldn't have made it—though, she wasn't going to let that happen.

The blood was no longer gushing from his neck, however she needed a closer look to see if the wound was sealed enough for the time being. She slowly moved her hand away from his neck, and gently peeled back the base of his mask to see what remained of the cut. Thankfully, it was healed. Perhaps not perfectly, as the wound still looked a little painful—but he'd survive.

She briefly rested a hand on his chest and he winced. His breathing was not as good as it should be. She had thought that it was because of the cut along his neck, but his breathing was still laboured even with the cut healed.

Sakura slipped her hand up and under his shirt, trying to reach his upper rib cage. She pushed her chakra into his chest and saw that he had a collapsed lung on top of everything else. She was surprised that he had made it this far. She knew he was used to taking a beating, but the human body was only meant to handle so much abuse.

Her instincts were telling her to look around the vicinity, but he needed her full concentration, since he wasn't out of danger yet. It felt unnatural to not tune into the surroundings in enemy territory, but she had to focus on what she was doing, and she knew that she could depend on the pack to protect them both.

She could still feel his eyes trying to concentrate on her, however she couldn't look at him right now since it would break her heart. To see him scared of dying was not something she was accustomed to—and it was something that she didn't want to ever become familiar with.

Thankfully, it didn't take long for the puncture in his lungs to heal and his collapsed lung to reinflate.

With an unsteady gasp, Kakashi took a deep breath. His chest steadily expanded and deflated a few times, testing his ability to breathe. Sakura's hand was still under his shirt and resting on his bare chest.

He closed his eyes in relief. At one point, he wasn't entirely sure that he was going to make it. He didn't doubt her ability to heal him, he just doubted his own body's ability to handle the trauma anymore. One day he knew his body just wouldn't heal. He could only push the limits of what the human body could endure for so long.

"Kakashi, how does that feel?" she said quietly, the rush of adrenaline slowing for both of them.

She only had the wound on his leg left to treat, which was thankfully not life-threatening. Just intensely painful. Before he could speak, he winced as he could only feel the throb of his severely broken leg.

"Here, let me help you with the pain." Her hand slipped from his shirt and rested on his hip on the side of the injured leg. She manipulated his nerves to help numb the pain, and his body sagged with relief.

"There, does that help?" Sakura moved to hover her face over his, looking him in his eyes, looking for any additional signs of distress.

With slow movements he moved his one hand up to his face and dragged down his mask. Sakura assumed that it was to take a deep breath, now that he could. His eyes opened slowly, staring up at her concerned emerald eyes. He reached out and cupped her face, with his long fingers reaching the back of her head, and his thumb brushed across her cheek. He hadn't noticed that his own hands were coated in his drying blood, and smeared bits across her soft cheek as he grazed her skin. He glanced down at her hands and saw that they were also covered in his blood too.

It was enough to shake anyone.

Without a second thought, he pulled her head down to his and pressed his lips soundly to hers. With his emotions running high, he didn't know if there were words that would be enough to convey how he was feeling.

Sakura squeaked when Kakashi pressed his lips against hers. She knew that it was not the right time to take advantage of the situation, but this kiss was long overdue. And it was easier to fall into the kiss than it was to pull away.

Dragging his warming lips to her heated ones was such a pleasure. Tasting her flavour as he pulled her into him. He sucked on her bottom lip, begging her wordlessly to give into him. His fingers threading through her hair, keeping her where he wanted her.

Before long, the kiss moved from a simple pressing of lips together to something more heated. While putting all of her weight on one hand, with her other hand she pushed her fingers through his hair. She was carefully hovering above his battered body—which was starting to feel warm again. How much she wanted to press into him and feel that deeper connection—feel the heat of his body against hers.

His tongue pushed into her mouth and gently teased her own—while his grip on the back of her head refused to relent. She melted further into his kiss, falling into the passion of his lips and talented tongue. His taste and the feel of him were nearly heady enough to make her forget where they were, even though it was nearly the worst possible time to share their first kiss.

After what seemed like a long time, she pulled away a little, knowing that this couldn't continue right now. Genma and Tenzo could reappear at any point, or worse, another shinobi could come across them in their vulnerable position.

"Kakashi," she whispered against his lips. "This is not the right time," she said gently, pulling his head back by his hair. Renewed by the potent feeling of living and breathing, he was willing to risk a few moments of carelessness for the opportunity to press his lips against hers.

"Sakura," he breathed heatedly and he moved to kiss her again, refusing to give in to logic. He couldn't seem to get enough of her taste and heat.

"Umm, boss?" Pakkun interrupted. "Genma and Tenzo are moving in fast."

Kakashi sighed as he brushed his lips across hers once more, then let his head thump back against the ground.

"Thanks Pakkun," she said as she brushed her fingers against her tingling lips, trying to imprint the feeling of his kiss into her memory. Only a second later, she came back to the reality of the situation. "Can you fetch me a stick please?" Sakura asked the pug absentmindedly.

"Pinkie, I may be a dog, but I have more important duties than playing fetch," Pakkun said in his deep grumpy voice, startling Sakura.

Sakura blushed, finally realizing how what she had said had come across. "Sorry Pakkun, I didn't mean it that way. I need to set Kakashi's leg, and he's going to need something to bite down on. You know, so he doesn't bite through his tongue," Sakura explained.

Pakkun nodded and rushed away to find what Sakura had asked of him.

The rest of her team appeared beside the medic and the fallen man, who had already subtly raised his mask back up. "What's his status?" Genma asked Sakura. He didn't look down at them, instead continuing surveying the clearing—ready for anything.

"He's out of danger, but I still need to deal with his leg. You can help me with that." Pakkun arrived with a stick for the fallen man. "Kakashi, this is going to hurt. Genma, hold down his shoulders."

Kakashi and Genma nodded at Sakura's statement. She placed the stick in Kakashi's mouth through the mask and moved down to his injured leg. She unbuckled his leg guard, took out one of her own kunai and made short work of his pant leg. She exposed the wound, and pressed some cursory chakra into it. She got a good firm grip of his lower leg. She looked towards the men—they both looked strained but ready. Kakashi needed to relax enough before she set his bone, otherwise there was a possibility that it would set incorrectly.

"Kakashi, do you like the foursome in Icha Icha Tactics or Icha Icha Violence better?" As Kakashi raised his head briefly to stare in astonishment at the medic, Sakura took this opportunity to pull, twist and snap his bone back into alignment.

Kakashi grunted and dropped his head back, momentarily passing out.

"That was mean, Pinkie," Genma scolded, letting go of his teammate's shoulders.

"He won't mind. I needed to distract him by getting his mind off of his leg, so that when I set it, it would set correctly," she said as she began to heal his leg.

"And that's the best you could come up with?"

"It did the job." She looked up at the senbon-wielding man. "Did anyone track the two of you? Should we be expecting any company?"

"We should be fine for a few more minutes," Tenzo spoke from behind her.

"It's a damn good thing that you're efficient at what you do," Genma said as he winked at her.

"I might be efficient, but he needs more time than we have right now. We will have to stop for the night so that I can finish these patch jobs. However, he'll survive for interim."

Kakashi was starting to regain consciousness as the last of his tissue closed on his leg. "Tactics, definitely Tactics," he said groggily. Sakura couldn't help but smile at the man who would wake up and answer her earlier question. "Am I good to go?" he asked as he came into full consciousness. He was staring up at the woman who just saved his life. He was still feeling a little high from his adrenaline and his emotions had the run of him.

"It looks like you'll survive another day," Genma said jokingly.

A brief flicker of emotion flashed across Sakura's face, but was gone a second later. Sakura pushed herself up and away from her patient. "He's healed enough to move at this point."

Kakashi attempted to take control of the mission once more. "I think it would be best to move away from this blood-soaked area. It's too easily tracked, and we're sitting ducks right now."

"Agreed. Can you move on your own?" Tenzo asked of the fallen man.

"Yes—"

"No, he can't. He will require help to move so that he doesn't tear open the quick fixes I did," Sakura impertinently interrupted. Since she was the medic, her word was law in this situation.

Kakashi was vexed that she tried to overrule him and that the team was listening to her. _He knew his own body best, didn't he?_ he thought angrily to himself. However, rather than causing a scene, he bent to her will.

"Fine. Genma in front, Sakura, you bring up the rear, and I will help Kakashi," Tenzo said. "Lets move out."

They moved into their assigned positions, and the pack refused to leave their leader in such a state, so they added an additional wall of security as the group moved through the forest. It was going to be a long night as the team made their way back into the heart of Hi no Kuni.

* * *

They traveled hard for the past five hours, moving at a decent pace, one that would take a toll on most healthy ninja—which Kakashi was not. Between the pack and her teammates, they were a large, formidable force, and thankfully, they encountered no one on their race back to Konoha.

With Sakura bringing up the rear, she could tell that Kakashi was at his physical limit of what he could endure. He was nearly tripping with every step. It was only because of Tenzo that he was still upright and moving forward. He was worrying her constantly. With every step, she worried that he was going to slip and fall to the ground hard.

Enough was enough—she couldn't take it anymore—he needed rest.

"Tenzo, we need to stop for the night, so that I can finish healing him and so that he can recover."

"I'm fine—"

"No, you're not. I'm the medic, I make the decisions this time," she said through her clenched teeth. She was tired of his tough guy routine.

Tenzo wisely agreed with her, as it was unlikely that Kakashi would take it out on him if he didn't agree with him—whereas she would.

"Okay, let's find a good place to settle in for the night," Kakashi called out to the group.

It didn't take long before they had found a suitable spot to rest for a few hours, then Tenzo called a halt to the group. Kakashi immediately slumped against the tree Tenzo had stopped near. The pack promptly began to set up guard and search the area to insure that there were no other humans in the vicinity. Genma and Tenzo spread out to put up wards and traps in order to alert them of intruders.

Sakura wasted no time in going up to Kakashi to see how he was doing. He was pale and looked weary, but his eyes were sharp.

"That was unnecessary—"

"As I said, I'm the medic, and I make the decisions regarding health. You need more time to recuperate," she said, seething at his retort.

"I'm fine—" He tried to stand up but she held him against the tree.

"For fuck's sake, you're not fine. You nearly died, and if I wasn't here to put you back together, you'd be dead. Even most other medics wouldn't have been able to save your sorry ass. You can't just get up and walk that shit off. Stop fighting me on this," she roared at him. Her voice echoed through the forest.

It was rare for her to show her anger like this. She had always been the type to have a very long wick to the bomb that was her emotions. And when she did explode it was usually through show of physical force and not usually words. She stared at him fiercely, waiting for him to resist once more.

He spent a moment glaring at her for raising her voice and yelling at him, even knowing that he was still severely injured. Kakashi finally concluded that he wasn't going to be able to leave without additional healing. He really didn't have the energy to continue the verbal sparring match, and he had absolutely no strength for a physical encounter with the pissed off medic. He slumped against the tree once more, waiting for her to do whatever she wanted.

She knelt before him and spoke softly, glad that her ANBU mask was covering her face. "Can't you tell that you scared me? Do you think I enjoy being covered in my friend's blood any more than you?" When she reached forward, he saw that her hands, gloves, and arm guards were still covered in his dried blood. She reached for the bottom edge of his mask, and slipped her hand under to rest on the recently healed wound. She began to gently pour her chakra once more into the injury to make sure that it wouldn't irritate him and that there would be minimal scarring.

With her blunt words, the reality of his plight finally dawned on Kakashi. He knew all too well the consequences of being put in that position. He reached out and placed a hand on her forearm.

"I'm sorry. I didn't think—"

"No shit you didn't think." It was supposed to come out calmly, but instead it came out as a harsh whisper. Sakura was desperately trying to hide how upset she was.

Kakashi slowly reached out and removed her mask. He could finally see her eyes once more. They were heavy with tears that she refused to allow to fall. She kept her face looking downwards, unable to meet his charcoal eyes. His hand reached out once more and lifted her chin so that their eyes met.

"I'm sorry."

"Idiot."

"Yes, I am. And I'm still sorry." He briefly cupped her cheek, trying to show her that he meant it.

"Kakashi—" she started, but was interrupted.

"We're set up and probably safe here for a few hours," Tenzo said as he walked up from behind Sakura. "How is Kakashi?"

Sakura took a deep breath. "He'll be fine. He could use a good night's sleep. So could I for that matter, since I've had to use a significant amount of my chakra to heal him," she said as she continued to treat his neck.

"I don't think we should stay here for more than five hours, but we can find another spot to rest again after we've moved closer to Konoha."

This time it was Kakashi who spoke up. "That's fine. We can make that work. Pakkun and the others will be able to help hide our tracks and protect us. We could probably all use a good night's sleep."

"I think it's safe enough to have a small fire too, but we should refrain from cooking anything."

Genma made his appearance to the group. "I've finished securing the area to the north and west. I've set up enough wards and traps so that no one will be getting close to us without our knowledge."

"Do either of you have any injuries that need tending?" Sakura asked of the men standing behind her.

"We're good, Pinkie, you just worry about old grey hair here," he teased.

Kakashi sat quietly as Sakura continued to heal him. He was doing his best to ignore the odd look that his other two teammates were giving him. They could tell that something was up between their injured partner and their medic, but they wisely kept their mouths shut.

Genma grabbed Tenzo by the arm and started dragging him a few meters away to give them some semblance of privacy. "We'll just make camp—over here," the senbon-wielding man said awkwardly.

Once again the pair was left somewhat alone—if you ignored the two men within earshot and the eight ninken that could hear everything within a kilometer of where they sat. Now he could at least look at her without everyone watching him, but the moment was lost. Her eyes lost a little of the deep emotion that she briefly showed him before, and now had returned to a neutral look. She had returned to being the medic.

"How does your neck feel now? Is there any stiffness or pain?"

"If I said it feels fine, will you believe me?" he asked, teasing her. Trying to lighten the mood.

"That depends on if you promise you're telling the truth."

He gently moved his head back and forth, stretching it out carefully, seeing if there was any lingering tightness or pain. "It feels good. Thank you." He cautiously reached out and rested a hand on her hip. When she had knelt down originally, she had done so between his legs, and now he was eager to keep her close.

"And how is your breathing? Does it hurt to breathe at all? Are you able to take a deep breath like normal?"

He experimented with a few deep inhalations and then reported to her. "It doesn't seem perfect, but I can breathe well enough. But I figure that's just from the exertion of the day."

"It might be, but I need to make sure. Come on, we need to take off your vest and I need to listen to your breathing." She reached out and started to undo his vest buckles, removing the garment before he could protest. She rose on her knees and helped him remove it, placing it off to the side.

Without thinking, she put both hands up his shirt—one on his front and one around his back, and rested her ear over the side of his chest where the problematic lung had been.

"Take a deep breath."

He breathed deeply, letting his chest fully expand and contract. He repeated this a few more times, until she nodded her head against his chest.

"I think I found the issue. Give me a second to fix it, then we can check again." She moved her head away from his chest and gently pushed more chakra into him, fixing what was causing the breathing issues. She wasn't sure what to say to him at this point since there were too many ears listening to them—she wasn't even sure if she wanted to start any type of conversation right now.

Sakura tried to keep her eyes lowered but she could feel Kakashi's intense gaze trying to penetrate her mental walls. There was nothing worse than a medic falling apart in the field. People's lives literally depended on her—including his. Until they were back behind the tall protective gates of their village, she would hold it together.

He kept his thoughts, words and hands to himself while she treated his lungs. She was strictly a medic right now, and she obviously needed that professional distance to deal with the situation. It was the least he could do to respect that.

"There, how's that?" She had removed one of her hands from his back, but kept the one in front as he took a few more experimental breaths.

After a moment he nodded his head. "Much better."

"Let me take one last look at your leg, and then I can let you go get some rest." She casually moved down to his leg, and gently pulled aside his cut pant leg to evaluate it once more. Sakura rested her hand on his leg, over the roughly healed scar and allowed her chakra to gently seep into his leg. She could tell that it was still a little tender and weak. In this case, it would be best if she left pockets of her chakra in his leg to finish the healing process overnight—that could sometimes be a more effective way to deal with injuries on extremities. Provided that he got at least 4 hours of sleep, his leg would be perfect by the time he woke up.

"All done. You'll feel better after a few hours of rest." She raised herself to her feet and extended her hand to help him up. He clasped it and with a gentle tug, she helped him to his feet.

The evening was cool and quiet. It bordered between being peaceful and eerie. Genma and Tenzo were sitting in front of a small crackling fire, talking quietly between themselves.

Sakura placed his arm across her shoulders and started walking towards the pair.

"I can walk on my own," he stated. Regardless, he didn't remove his arm. He was feeling much better, besides just being exhausted and emotionally troubled by her.

"It's okay to lean on a friend every once in a while, Kakashi," she said as she gently helped him to sit by the fire. "Get some rest. I'll be right back."

"Wait, Sakura, you shouldn't go off alone," Tenzo spoke up first. All three men shifted, knowing that staying in pairs was the safest plan, especially since they weren't far from enemy territory.

"I just need a few minutes to clean up, and then I'll be right back."

Kakashi didn't like the idea of her going off alone either. "I also need to get cleaned up—"

"I'd like to go alone."

"But—"

"Bull and I will accompany her," Pakkun said as he walked up to the group after he came out of the nearby bushes. A moment later, and just as stealthily, Bull walked up to the group, coming to sit beside Sakura.

"Thank you Pakkun, that would be perfect," she said as she adjusted her mask and hood so that her face and hair were covered once more.

The group of men looked like they all wanted to argue with the medic, but they knew that they would lose. She was more than capable of taking care of herself, and even more so with the pack around to keep an eye on her.

"I'll bring back some water, so that you can get cleaned up later, Kakashi. Right now you need rest."

Once more, Kakashi was upset that things weren't going his way, but he had to trust her and that his pack would take care of her. He watched as she moved away from their camp, worried that her back would be the last thing he would see of her.

* * *

Sakura and the two ninken quickly came to a small opening in the forest. It was a clear night, but it was still quiet. Too cold for bugs and birds to fill the air with their gentle calls.

She followed Pakkun as he led her towards a small pond a few hundred meters away from their camp. It would be far enough away from her team that she could have a few moments alone.

The quietness allowed Sakura's mind to take over—so much to process. In the heat of the moment, she never had any problems keeping her mind focused on either the battle or healing the injured. But now—now she had a moment to fall apart.

"It's secure. No one is around," Pakkun said reassuringly.

"Thanks Pakkun."

The two nin-ken stopped before the small pond, while she continued to walk forward. She reached up and removed her mask, hood, arm guards and gloves, tossing them at the water's edge. Kakashi's blood saturated all of her gear and it made her feel nauseated. In her profession, she was used to being covered in blood, but like Kakashi, it was different when it was a friend's.

She waded into the water, past the dried up reeds, until the icy liquid lapped at her thighs. The chilliness of the water bit into her skin like knives, but she was determined to push through and scrub off the blood that covered her. She bent down, sinking her arms up to her elbows and started to scour them. She knew that she also had track marks of his blood across her face, so she cupped the water and splashed some on her face and neck.

She briefly turned around and gathered her gloves and arm guards to quickly wash those too. That's where most of his blood was concentrated, but the rest of her uniform would have to wait until she was home. Once she finished removing most of the repugnant stains off of her gear, she put them back on and sat at the edge of the pond.

It was only a second before Bull sat to her left, once again sharing his warm furry body with her. Pakkun sat on her right and lifted a paw to rest on her knee.

"Thanks guys. I just want to sit here for a bit if that's okay," she said quietly.

The three of them looked out over the pond and how the night sky was reflected in the calm waters. She was still trying to hold back her tears, because it still wasn't the best time to fall apart.

"He doesn't mean to be like that, Sakura-chan. He just doesn't know any different."

"It's okay, Pakkun. I know he doesn't completely understand, and I know he doesn't know any better. I just wish he wasn't so oblivious."

"He's still a pup in many ways, but he does care for you."

"I know," she said quietly. She wasn't in the mood to talk, as she just wanted to sit and soak in the peace and quiet. She needed time to regain her composure. "Thanks, Pakkun."

She scratched his ear briefly before wrapping her arms around her drawn up knees. Bull leaned into her a little more, letting her know in his own way that he's there for her too.

_Just a few more minutes_ , she thought to herself. Then she could face going back to the camp. she knew it was still unsafe to be out here so far from the rest of the team for too long. However, she just needed this little bit of stillness before she faced them again—especially Kakashi.

She slowed her breathing, trying to absorb the calmness of the night rather than falling prey to her own emotions. Some deep breathing was helping to calm her heart rate as well.

After a few more minutes of quietness, she slowly stood up, turning away from the peaceful reflections and began to walk back to her teammates. Walking rather than racing back to her teammates suited her mood more right now.

She really didn't know what to do about Kakashi. It terrified her to see him that weak and literally on death's door—but that kiss! She wanted another chance to experience that passion and that heat once more. She was wondering if it was possible to be aroused, hurt, mad and scared all at the same time—all with the same man.

With a man like Kakashi, anything was possible. Especially multiple emotions at once. However, right now, she felt so exhausted from the emotional ups and downs that she just wanted to curl up on the uncomfortable ground and sleep for the next few hours.

Sakura gathered her thoughts, stood up, and headed back to the temporary camp. It didn't take long for her to get back to the team. Pakkun walked off into the bush, while Bull continued to follow her. All three men were around the fire, Kakashi resting on the far side of the fire, facing her—watching her. On either side of him, Tenzo and Genma sat upright, having a quiet conversation.

Without words they acknowledged Sakura's quiet return, and continued their hushed conversation. Even though Kakashi's body was deadly still, his eyes followed her movements from across the fire as she curled up on the ground. At first, she watched him watching her, but after a brief moment, she was too burnt out to continue making eye contact with his poignant gaze—even though it gave her a little flutter in her chest with the way that he was staring at her.

There was a gentle puff behind her as Bull settled down and rested his massive head on her hip. She smiled as she looked at the big dog's face and scratched his head. She closed her eyes and allowed the big dog to use her as a pillow. Between the fire and Bull, she was warm and comfortable enough to fall into an uneasy sleep.

* * *

A few hours later, Sakura was nudged awake by Tenzo. Bull had remained by her side the whole time, which helped to keep her warm and comforted, but she still felt exhausted. It was just a few hours away from noon, and they still had at least a 9-hour race back to Konoha.

She thought about popping a soldier pill but decided against it. Between her seal and her natural chakra store, she had massive amounts of built-up chakra. She hated dipping into her stores in case of an emergency arising, but it was what it was. It was there to be used, and she would need it today.

Tenzo wordlessly woke Genma and finally Kakashi. The two brunets proceeded to hide the traces of their camp, while Sakura approached Kakashi.

"Morning," she said quietly. "How are you feeling this morning? Any issues or pain?" she asked as she knelt down.

"My chakra is still low and I'm tired, but I feel no pain." He desperately wanted to reach out and give her a reassuring touch, but his teammates were too close, and he just wasn't ready for that type of public intimacy. "Thank you for putting me back together. I know I wouldn't have made it if you hadn't been here," he said quietly.

Sakura was surprised that he admitted that. She was generally surprised by his demeanour this morning. He certainly seemed tired, but also not quite as cocky as his usual self.

"You're welcome. Just try to be more careful in the future." She stood up and extended her hand to help him stand up.

His big warm hand encircled hers and allowed her to help him to stand, but he didn't let go immediately. He gave her hand a gentle squeeze which sent a flutter throughout her whole body.

"Let's move out," he called out to the team. "I want to be home before dark." He let go of her hand, but didn't break eye contact with her just yet. This subdued side of him honestly worried her. He wasn't his usual cocky self, regardless of being more or less physically fit once again. Being that close to death was obviously having an effect on him—just as much, perhaps, as it had affected her.

"Pakkun?" Kakashi called out. The pug wandered out of the woods beside them. "Can you and the pack finish hiding any traces of our presence here, and then catch up with us?"

"Sure thing boss," he answered and went about his task.

Without another word, they fell into order and took to the trees. Genma leading the pack with Kakashi behind him, then Sakura, with finally Tenzo bringing up the rear. They moved at a steady pace towards their home—all wanting to get home where it was safe and secure.

* * *

They spent the next 9 hours whizzing through the treetops, hurrying back to Konoha. No words were spoken between them. No stops or breaks either. They all had the understanding that they couldn't stop until they had reached the safety of their hidden village. The pack had quickly caught up to the humans, and helped ensure that they weren't running into enemies and that their trail was sufficiently covered.

Towards the end of their trek, the forests began to become more familiar, and the team was quickly beginning to feel more at ease. Nevertheless, they didn't let up their pace, all of them eager to reach the gates.

Another few hundred meters and they finally saw the enormous green gates that told them that they had made it home.

The group stopped just inside their village. The guards on duty nodded to the arriving group, recognizing them immediately as Kakashi's team.

The pack encircled Kakashi, waiting for further instructions. He knelt down to be on their level. He realized that he had scared his lifelong companions on this mission, and he was grateful to their constant help. Without them, he probably wouldn't have made it.

"Thank you everyone. You all did a good job, and I'm grateful." He petted them on the head and in a burst of vapours, they dispersed.

Sakura watched as Kakashi humbled himself to his pack in front of his team. It was all Sakura could take. Just a few more minutes before she could be home and fall apart alone. Just one duty left.

"Do any of you have any additional injuries that need tending to at this moment?"

Both Genma and Tenzo shook their heads no, while Kakashi rose before her.

"I think you've done enough for us, Sakura."

"Then if there's nothing else, then you are all free to go home. I'll clear you guys for your next mission after a few days. Kakashi, you need at minimum five days off, and please get checked out tomorrow by a medic, to ensure that you're healing properly." She made sure not to make eye contact with him.

"Okay—" Kakashi began.

"Good night," Sakura interrupted and disappeared in a burst of pink petals.

Kakashi sighed, and dragged a hand down his face.

"You're an idiot. You know that, right?" Genma asked as he shifted his ANBU mask to the side of his head. He replaced the senbon in his mouth and turned to face his silver haired teammate.

"Genma, I really don't need this right now."

"Yeah, you might not want to hear it, but you do need it. You're an idiot," he repeated. "What's going on between you?" Genma asked bluntly, while Tenzo curiously waited for an answer.

"I don't know. But it's likely your fault. If you hadn't—"

"Hadn't what? Told you how attractive our medic is? Are you really that blind? I didn't realize that you are so naive about women, Kakashi. She must find you attractive, because it can't be your personality that she likes. Especially after acting like a complete fool with her."

"And what would you have me do? Seduce her like you would?"

"Why don't you try just talking to her. I hear that women like to talk. You should try it," he said snidely.

Tenzo just quietly nodded his head.

Kakashi sighed; he didn't like complications. But he also didn't like the strain between him and Sakura. He knew it would be best if he cleared that up immediately. Something had been building between them and he didn't want to lose that trust.

"Fine. I'll go make sure she's okay." He said as he looked down at his battered and bloodied hands.

"Don't screw it up this time! Try saying sorry!" Genma called out to Kakashi's back.

He turned and headed in the direction of Sakura's apartment. "I'll catch up with you guys later," he said as he gave a single wave to his friends as he left them once more at the gates.

* * *

Thank you again everyone who has reviewed! They really do make my day!

Take care in these uncertain times. Be Kind, Be Patient and Be Safe. This too will pass.


	10. Something Salacious

So I decided to post this chapter early because it's my birthday and my gift to all of you is this chapter! Enjoy!

_**THIS CHAPTER CONTAINS EXPLICIT CONTENT!** _

**Please, if you are underage or do not like SMUT do not continue. The whole chapter is filled with it.**

Thank you to my lovely beta reader, TipsyRaconteur who keeps putting up with my crazy stuff and has always been there for me as a friend as well as a beta.

And thank you so much to all of those who have read and reviewed. Each review I receive puts a smile on my face, and I'm especially grateful for receiving them when the days are hard-and there's been a few of those lately. Your reviews help me so much. So thank you!

* * *

Kakashi sighed to himself as he approached Sakura's apartment from the rooftops. He wanted to talk to her and thank her, but he knew that wasn't the only reason why he followed her home. He felt so drawn to her, and he couldn't resist it anymore—especially after everything that had happened in the past two days. Even without his teammate's encouragement, he had still planned on visiting her tonight.

He entered her apartment without her permission or knowledge, but he sent out a pulse of his chakra to let her know that he's here. With his sensitive hearing, he knew that she was already in the shower, washing away the mission. Cleaning away the dirt, blood, sweat, but thankfully no tears—at least none this time.

Quietly entering the bathroom, he noticed a pile of blood stained clothes in the trash. It was a sadly a familiar sight to him. She hadn't been physically injured on this past mission, but he knew that the mental strain on her throughout the mission had been a lot to handle.

"Sakura?" he called out to her.

"Kakashi." She paused, "Are you okay? Do you need something else?" she asked from inside the shower. He could hear the exhaustion in her voice.

"I'm fine Sakura, you've done enough for me," Kakashi stated. "I'm here for you. I wanted to thank you for everything you've done for me." His comment sounded inadequate, even to him.

"Kakashi, I'm okay. Just dirty and tired."

"Okay." Kakashi wasn't sure what to do at this point. He was dirty and tired too. He hadn't even stopped at his place to get cleaned up before coming here. He looked down at his uniform, seeing it covered in a patchwork of his own blood, he thought about how good a shower would have been before coming over. "I'm sorry Sakura, I should probably go and get cleaned up and let you have a quiet evening," he sighed more to himself.

Sakura shifted the curtain aside and looked at him. Despite the range of emotions that she felt towards the man, she still felt a bolt of lust tear through her as she stood naked with only a thin curtain separating them. "Kakashi, you can either wait out in the living room for me, or you can join me in here."

Regardless of everything she had been through in the past 48 hours, she was still drawn to him—and hadn't realized that she was going to invite him to join her until it was out of her mouth. And there was no way that she would regret her offer, since she wanted him.

Kakashi stood in shock for a quick moment as his mind pictured Sakura naked and wet while he stood behind her, running his hands all over her. He was already starting to get hard at the thought. However, Kakashi wasn't sure if joining her would be the best idea, given how upset she had been earlier—he didn't want her to be asking him to join her because of almost losing him. If they took that next step, there would be no going back after this. Kakashi felt so conflicted—he wanted nothing more than to undress and join her, but at the same time he worried about her. He tried one last ditch effort at reasonable thinking.

"Sakura, are you sure?" he asked haltingly.

"I'm not going to offer twice, Kakashi."

Kakashi took half a second before he started removing his mission gear. He was filthy and still covered in his own blood. His vest made a thud as it hit her bathroom floor and he didn't stop there. It didn't take long until he dropped the last piece of clothing off of his tired body. He pulled the flimsy shower curtain aside and joined Sakura.

Her back was to him as she stood under the spray of the shower. He watched for a second as the water ran down the valley of her back, and off the contour of her ass. How he desperately wanted to follow that trail with his hands and then his mouth. But he looked down at his blood soaked hands compared to her pristine and unmarked body, and knew that he didn't want to touch her with his unclean hands.

It wasn't a very big shower, so he had to stand directly behind her. The heat from her body and the shower was so enticing that he couldn't help but take another step closer. She moved forward a little to give him some space and for a chance to get under the shower spray. Careful not to touch her with filthy hands, he reached around her for the bar of soap that was hanging off the shower head rack. He wanted to get the dirt and his own blood off of him as soon as possible.

He nearly groaned aloud with how good the hot water felt good on his achy body. He quickly lathered the bar and washed his own body and hair. Closing his eyes, he put his head under the spray of water to rinse the soap from his hair. Kakashi paused with his head under the stream of water, enjoying how the water warmed his skin. Hesitantly, a second set of hands joining him in his hair—he hadn't noticed her turning around to face him.

Kakashi slowly opened his eyes as he dropped his hands down to her hips and let her contend with his hair. He watched her for a moment, enjoying the way she looked and felt while so close to him. With a steady grip, he pulled her flush against his body and bent his head, angling it to brush his lips against hers. With her hands still tangled tightly in his hair, she pulled him into her. Her movements were almost needy and pleading as her emotions were still hypersensitive. Knowing that she needed a little time to process what was happening, he gave her control.

He broke the kiss briefly. "What do you need?" he asked in a husky voice, while placing butterfly kisses across her cheek and jaw. He let her press further into him.

"You," Sakura said as she pulled him back down for another kiss. She got up on her toes to deepen the action. She desperately wanted to feel consumed by him. The strong body against her would shield her from her own unsettling thoughts.

"You've got me. I'm not going anywhere," he whispered against her lips. However, once he said that, she broke the kiss and hugged him, gently shivering as her emotions took over once more. He moved his hands from her hips and up to her back and hugged her closely to him.

"You're an idiot. You always take stupid risks," she said harshly into his chest.

He gathered all of her hair in one of his hands, holding it off of her neck. With his other hand, he took hold of the nape of her neck and carefully massaged the base of her skull, trying to help her calm a little. Looking into her eyes, he saw how red they were, which sent little pangs of guilt and sadness straight to his heart. Seeing the angry tears mix with water as they rolled down her cheeks, only emphasized how close of a call it was for him.

"Sakura. Our job is a dangerous one. You've taken stupid risks too. I seem to remember you getting yourself impaled on several rods all at once during the fourth war. I had you there for this mission, so the risk was acceptable," he qualified carefully.

"Your life is not an acceptable trade for our job." The force and viciousness of her voice startled him. She tried to push him away, but he didn't let her. She was gearing up to hit him to accentuate her point, so he tightened his grip on her—not allowing her to pull back physically or emotionally.

Kakashi sighed as he held on to her firmly, securing her petite body against his. "We do what we have to do for our friends and the village. I know you don't like that answer, but it's the only one I have for you." He dropped her hair and took her head in his hands and made her look up at him. He kissed her repeatedly on the lips and whispered to her in between kisses. "I'm here for you now."

Sakura deflated after he said that. She was trying so hard to suppress the fear that kept rearing its ugly head. Placing one hand on his neck over his newest scar and her other hand along his rib cage on the same side where he had his lung issues. She sent out a slight tendril of chakra to make sure that those spots were still functioning well, and within a second, she knew that he was indeed whole and safe.

She heaved a weary sigh, trying to accept the here and now. "I know. Thank you, and I'm sorry for acting out like that. But you're not _just_ a patient or a friend to me anymore." She took a deep breath forcing herself to calm down.

"I'm sorry to have worried you so much," Kakashi said gently to her, and hugged her tightly. Wrapping his muscular arms once more around her, letting her feel how solid and sturdy he was—how alive he was.

"I know." Sakura paused feeling the need to explain herself. "I typically get a chance after missions to decompress on my own before I face anyone. But I'm glad you're here," Sakura said, taking another deep cleansing breath, but then started to snicker. She could feel herself blushing so she tucked her head against his chest. "Ummm... you're ummm... rather ready... and rather big."

Kakashi had a good chuckle; he was used to her mercurial temperament. He replied, "Yes, well that's your fault." Kakashi bent down and pressed his lips to her shoulder. He didn't want to rush her or push her into anything she wasn't ready for. So he waited with baited breath for her to continue.

He didn't have to wait long when she pushed her hips forward, pressing against his swelling erection. "Well I don't want to leave you in such a state. That's not very kind of me," she said, teasing him with a breathy voice. She reached down towards his erection, but was surprised when he stopped her.

"I couldn't agree more," Kakashi replied. "But I have something else in mind first..." Kakashi grinned and took Sakura by the hips and turned her around, so that her back was flush against his chest. She put her hands out to the wall to brace herself. His strong arms encircled her with one hand landing under her breast and the other resting on her hip. Her breasts were much larger than they seemed when they were bound. More than large enough for his hands.

Sakura tipped her head back and rested it against his chest, and reached her hands into his hair, giving him full access to her body. She could feel his hardened length pressing into the curve of her back and as he adjusted her position, she could feel just how big he was. She let out a long sigh in anticipation.

Moving one hand to hover over her breast, he gently rubbed her nipple with his thumb bringing it to a stiff peak, while she continued to grip his hair tightly. His other hand played with the trimmed hair at the top of her mound. Even with the water pouring down their bodies, he could still smell how aroused she was. Kissing her shoulder and breathing heavily into her ear, he could barely contain his own arousal.

Sakura could scarcely think straight anymore, but before she completely lost herself in the moment, she asked, "What about you? I want to touch you..." Kakashi ignored her question and did his best to distract her by slipping a finger to her core. He began to press one finger between her lips, feeling the wetness and heat there.

"Fuck, you're soaking and so warm," Kakashi growled in her ear. He could feel how ready she was for him. But rather than rushing to the finish line, he decided to draw out their pleasure, knowing it would be more fun to tease her into her submission.

He dipped one of his fingers into her core, and her reaction was instantaneous. She let go of a breathy moan and moved one hand back out to the wall and her other hand moved out to his thigh and grasp him tightly. She briefly opened her eyes to see one muscular arm snaking down her side with his hand disappearing between her legs. That view nearly sent her over, especially since she always had a thing for his strong, muscular arms.

Kakashi slowly moved his finger in and out of her, enjoying her passionate reactions, while his other hand toyed with her breast. He could tell that she was getting close to orgasming. He slowly pulled his one finger out, which caused Sakura to whimper unhappily, until he inserted a second one and pushed the pair of them in an upwards motion. Sakura let out a deeper groan, and pushed back into his throbbing member. Wanting to push her a step further, he brushed his thumb across her clit, and her need and lust were palatable.

"Come for me, Sakura," he growled into her ear, pumping his fingers faster in and out of her. He lightly nipped her shoulder, tweaked her nipple again, and brushed his thumb over her clit more vigorously, hoping to send her over the edge. After another few seconds of that treatment of her and she went over with a flourish.

Sakura forcefully pushed her head and her body back into him as a lustful cry came out of her. Her fingers dug into his thigh as she lost herself to pleasure. After arching into his body as the first waves of her orgasm ripped through her, she slumped forward, her legs weakened from her powerful shocks.

Kakashi felt her inner walls clench around his fingers, while she drenched herself and his hand. He was so hard thinking about slipping fully inside of her; to feel her orgasm massage his member would quickly put him over the edge too. However, before he came to that he wanted more from her still, even though he was happy just giving her this little bit of pleasure.

"I've got you. It's okay to let go. I'll hold you up," Kakashi whispered in her ear. He put a little chakra into his feet so that he didn't slip while he fully supported her in her post-orgasmic state. His ego was flying high, thoroughly enjoying the pleasure he brought Sakura.

Keeping one arm wrapped around her stomach, he placed one of his legs between hers, and pulled her body tightly into his. She moaned and went stiff again when he dragged her overly sensitive core along his leg. She was still experiencing aftershocks from her earlier orgasm. He reached over and shut off the quickly cooling water.

"Let's get out, dry off, and move this to the bedroom," Kakashi suggested. Sakura didn't even respond—she was completely out of it.

Bending over to slip an arm behind her knees and the other across her back, Kakashi picked her up, and got out of the shower, her eyes closed in bliss. He placed her down on the mat, and he waited for her to open her eyes before he let go.

"Sakura? Are you alright there?" Kakashi asked with a chuckle.

"I feel glorious," she murmured with a sluggish smile.

"I'm glad I could help with that," Kakashi boasted.

He let go of her briefly to grab her towel and started drying her off. Kakashi draped the towel over her hair and gently rubbed her head with it. Slowly, Sakura began to open her eyes, even though she felt completely lulled to the world. The cocky smirk on Kakashi's face made Sakura feel giddy and so deliciously divine.

With the towel still over her hair, Kakashi bent down and kissed her hard, his hands weaving into her wet hair, keeping her pressed into him. She moaned into his mouth, enjoying all of the attention he was spending on her.

Kakashi broke the kiss and continued drying her off. He dragged the towel across her shoulders and arms, and then down her back. He moved to dry her front, paying special attention to her breasts—enjoying playing with the sensitive peaks.

Sakura reached out and touched his chest, wanting to return some of the pleasure he'd given her. It was impossible to not get more aroused by staring at his muscular body, even if it was peppered with new and old scars. It was the body of a man whom she completely trusted. She ran her hands down his abdomen towards his erection, but once more he stopped her before she could touch him.

"Why? I want to touch you," Sakura objected.

"Because, I want to draw out this evening and focus on you," Kakashi said as he bent to kiss her hard—silencing her complaints.

She pouted until he dragged the towel down between her legs, sending a bolt of lust through her once more, distracting her from touching him. Closing her eyes, Sakura let the feeling ravage her body. "You are so sensitive. If I touch you again, you're going to burst on me," Kakashi said incredulously.

Sakura moaned sweetly, "It's been a while, and you're rather good at all of this." Her cheeks reddened at the admission. He may not be allowing her to touch him, but at least she could stroke his ego a little.

Kakashi burst out with a booming laugh—a type of laugh that Sakura had never heard from him before. "And that was with only one hand, imagine what the rest of me is going to do to you," he said with a sly grin.

Kakashi quickly finished drying her legs and then started on himself. The towel was saturated with her scent which he began to rub all over himself. He wanted to spend the rest of the day drinking in her satisfied essence. He ended with drying his own hair, and all the while, Sakura watched him through lust-filled, hooded eyes.

Before he could take charge again, Sakura placed her hands on his chest, stood on her tippy-toes and kissed him deeply. Her nipples brushed against his chest, sending waves of pleasure through them both.

Wanting to continue their exploration of each other, she took his hand and led him to her bedroom. Kakashi willingly followed her as they went through her dark apartment. As they reached the dark room, a thought dawned on Kakashi, and he stopped her before they could fully enter her bedroom.

Kakashi sighed, "Sakura, I didn't think to bring any condoms with me, so we can't…" While he didn't think that this would happen tonight, he had known that this was an eventuality between them, and perhaps he should have been more prepared.

"Kakashi, when will you learn that I'm a medic, and I can control my own body perfectly? I will not get pregnant until I'm ready to, and I'm clean. I know you're clean from your files, as long as you've had no other partners since your last test...?" she asked hesitantly.

"None. And thank the gods, because I really didn't want to have to stop tonight." He sighed in relief. "However I did want to give you another chance to consider this, in case you were unsure," Kakashi replied cautiously.

"Kakashi, I want this. I want you." To illustrate her point, she stretched out her hand and encompassed his erection, slowly bringing her hand down its shaft to the base, and back up. She rubbed her thumb over the slit at the top, procuring a strangled groan from Kakashi.

Before she could progress further, he grasped her hips and walked her backwards until the back of her legs touched her bed. She reached behind her and gently fell back. She moved until her head was resting on her pillow and Kakashi stood before her.

The light from the street filtered in through her windows casting odd shapes on him, highlighting parts of his body. But he stood before her completely naked and wonderfully erect. Just by looking at him she became more aroused. He was both slim and muscular, and lightly covered with scars that criss-crossed his body. He was a finely honed weapon, and she thought he was gorgeous, inside and out.

Sakura reached out a hand, and when he took it, she pulled him down, so that he fully rested on top of her. She enjoyed how it felt to have his weight completely on her. She shifted her legs and brought them to either side of his hips, allowing him to settle completely on her center. "I hope that convinces you that there are no doubts in my mind about you."

"Mmmm… yes, I can feel no doubts," he moaned as he felt the heat of her core against his own hot skin. Kakashi pressed his lips against hers, trying to convey the depth of his lust for her. He moved his hands to either side of her head and held his upper body slightly off of her, trying his best not to completely crush her with his significantly larger body.

She reached up and wrapped her arms and stroked his back, encouraging him to continue.

Kakashi stopped kissing her mouth to trail his lips down her neck and to her breasts. He spent equal time worshiping each breast with kisses, licks and nuzzling, blowing lightly on each wet nipple to tease and arouse her to further heights.

Sakura was watching everything he was doing to her, and the erotic scene turned her on even more. Kakashi shifted his gaze to look up at her from between the valley of her breasts. "Sakura, you're gorgeous." He was so turned on by her and her beautiful body. She was driving him out of his mind with passion for her.

Kakashi continued his trail of kisses down her stomach to her bellybutton and dipped his tongue in there, which made her squirm. He readjusted his position so that his face was right over her core, while he grasped her hips and held her in place, placing her legs over his shoulders. He knew that she was about to lose control and he wanted to hold her tightly in place.

She watched him and he placed kisses to her inner thigh and moved over her core. She could feel his hot breath at her center, but he wasn't breaking eye contact with her. It was probably one of the most erotic things that had ever been done to her. His eyes held hers as he began to lick her clit with the flat of his tongue, and she couldn't bear to look away while he was doing such exquisite things to her. But she couldn't last long as pleasure took over her and her eyes rolled back into her head. She let out a heady moan when his lips and tongue sucked on her clit.

"Mmmm… Sakura, you're so wet for me, and you taste so good." Kakashi breathed into her. "Do you want more?" Kakashi hummed as he continued to suck and lick at her sensitive core.

"Kashi— Mmmm! Yes!" Sakura was having trouble making any sense. She felt so good. Suddenly, Sakura felt his finger at her entrance again, and she tried to roll her hips to take him in, but he wasn't having any of that. "Mmm, no, that's not allowed. We're doing things at my pace tonight. You'll just have to be more patient." Kakashi murmured into her heat.

Sakura pushed her hands into his hair, trying to direct him to where she wanted him, but he was having none of that. "What did I just say? Do I have to restrain your hands, Sakura?"

"Damn it Kakashi!" Sakura groaned in frustration, feeling so close to the brink. He had ceased his actions, and she could feel his hot breath over her core.

"Yes, Sakura? Is there something I can do for you?" He teased, knowing that she was so close to climaxing again. He gave her another languid lick up her core.

Sakura was nearly sobbing with desire, but she was also getting a fierceness in her eyes. Kakashi paused for another second before giving her another slow lick. He was waiting for her answer. "Kakashi, so help me! If you don't keep your mouth on my clit, and put a finger in me right now, I'm going to flip you over and ride you until I'm happy." She half-shouted, half-pleaded with him.

"You know it's not polite to yell like that, but I'll comply with your demands—this time. But we'll save the idea of you riding me for another time." He said with a wink, and then sunk his face to her core and did as she begged him.

As he slipped a finger into her, she arched off her bed in pure pleasure. She couldn't help herself when her hands reached down and grasped his hair again. She wasn't pushing him in any direction. She just needed something to hang on to as she flew apart. He pumped his finger out of her center and licked her clit until she was in a frenzied state. She arched again when she climaxed, calling out his name, while moaning at the same time. His mouth was flooded with her honey, and he lapped up every drop, still moving his finger in and out of her, but at a much more gentle pace.

Kakashi relished in seeing her fall apart as her core was once more pulsed around his finger with her second orgasm. Watching a woman orgasm was one of the sexiest things he's ever seen. He wished he still had his sharingan to memorize Sakura's climax, so that he could play it over and over in his head whenever he wanted. He carefully removed his finger and kissed her inner thigh again; knowing that her core was too sensitive for anymore stimulation at the moment. Her hands had loosened her grip on his hair and fell to her side when he shifted his position. He moved his head to kiss her shoulder, as he wasn't sure if she would be okay tasting herself on his lips.

"Mmmm… now Kakashi." Sakura pleaded, her body begging for his. She reached out and placed a hand against him, needing that physical connection.

Kakashi laid on his side, watching Sakura come down from her climax. If he was to enter her now, he'd likely come right away since her throbbing on his cock would be too much for him just yet. He still wanted to prolong this evening—wanting to make sure that this would be the only thing she remembered of the past 48 hours. However, it was getting difficult to move because his erection was really straining for attention.

"You have to calm down a little first before we continue, Sakura." He murmured quietly, stroking a hand up and down her chest.

"Fuck, I feel marvelous!" Sakura said in a dream-like state. "You're incredible, Kakashi," she said in awe. She groaned again when another wave of orgasm went through her.

He kissed her shoulder again. "Mmmm… anytime Sakura," he said with a smirk.

Sakura moved her hand to his face and guided his face towards her own and kissed him deeply. She knew she tasted herself on his lips, but she really didn't care. He tasted of musk and something else, with most of his own flavour coming through.

His breathing began to pick up as she kissed him relentlessly, knowing that he wouldn't be able to withhold from her for much longer. Sakura pulled at him so that his body was hovering over hers. She tried to pull him down on to her, but he did his best to resist, since he was thoroughly enjoying driving her crazy with desire. Perhaps somewhat unknowingly, she was also driving him crazy with need, he closed his eyes to try to compose himself, but his eyes flew open when he felt her hand grasp his erection. She pumped his length a few times, trying to get him to comply with her unspoken demands to which he finally broke.

"Okay, Sakura, enough playing," Kakashi said huskily. She let go of his length when he positioned himself at her entrance.

Sakura was still lying on her back, her legs spread, and Kakashi knelt between them. He spread his knees widely so that when he pulled her hips towards him she was at a slight angle upwards. He kept one hand on her hip, and his other moved to his length, positioning it at her entrance.

"Sakura," he called trying to get her to open her eyes. "Open your eyes and watch me enter you," he lured her. She was already so drunk with pleasure that she could barely understand what he had said. But she opened her eyes, nevertheless and watched. He slowly pushed just his tip through her soaking folds; he was so turned on by watching her watch him as he penetrated her.

Instinctively she rolled her hips trying to force more of him in, and he finally obliged her and pushed fully into her, sinking into the hilt. He paused momentarily as his breathing and heart rate quickened at the feel of her. He held back his desire to pump in and out of her with a wild abandonment—he knew there would be other days for that.

Sakura gasped, closed her eyes and threw her head back with a moan. He knew he was bigger than the average guy, so he waited until she grew accustomed to his size. Kakashi grunted as he could still feel the mini aftershocks from her previous orgasm still pulsing around his erection. She was so hot, wet and tight for him that it nearly sent him over the edge.

When she showed that she was ready for more, he pulled back until just his tip was barely inside and gradually pushed all the way back in. As he picked up speed, he was rocking her body hard, and in order to anchor herself in one position, she reached above her head and pushed against the wall to hold herself. When Kakashi saw her doing this, he picked up the pace even more, thrusting as deeply as he could, trying to bring them both to orgasmic bliss.

After one particularly hard thrust, Sakura moaned his name deeply. With every push forward, her breasts bounced which caught his attention so much that his eyes couldn't leave them. He bent forward, encased one nipple in his mouth and sucked hard, almost sure that he was going to leave a mark.

"Come on Sakura, you're almost there. Come for me one more time. Just let go," Kakashi growled into her breast. "Come while I'm in you," he punctuated his demand with a rough thrust.

Sakura was delirious with pleasure, but she was able to think about Kakashi's needs. "Come with me, Kakashi," she pleaded with a groan, knowing that it was only seconds before she elapsed again.

"I will. Just let go." He nipped her breast lightly.

"Kakashi," she moaned his name after one last thrust and began to orgasm intensely. Her inner walls constricting around his erection so hard that it spurred his own climax. A few last deep thrusts into her and his balls clenched as he shot his seed into her. With a strangled groan he stopped moving and partially fell onto her, grasping onto her tightly. Her body was warm and vibrating with gratification, Kakashi felt so satisfied with her beneath him.

Their sweaty bodies pulsing with pleasure. It was several minutes before he thought to move. He was about to pull his flaccid member out, when she wrapped her legs around him, preventing him from moving.

"Just stay here for a bit. I like the feel of you in me." She purposefully clenched her inner walls keeping him right where she wanted him. He groaned again and fully collapsed on to her.

"You're going to kill me," Kakashi muttered into her hair.

"Death by being over sexed is a good way to go. But thankfully for you, I'm a trained medic, so I'd save you," Sakura teased him. She stroked his muscular but sweaty back with her hands, trying to reassure him. They laid comfortably in silence for a few moments, just enjoying how they both felt.

After a few moments, Kakashi shifted on top of her. "I need sleep—you wore me out. But you can't sleep with me crushing you." Kakashi commented, thoughtfully. "Hold on." With her legs still wrapped around him, holding him in her, he rolled until their positions changed, with her on top. And surprisingly, he stayed inside of her throughout their roll.

With the last of his energy sapped, he wearily dropped his limbs to the bed. Sakura giggled. "Poor Kakashi. You're all used up." Sakura kissed his chin in a teasing manner.

"Mmmm," Kakashi mumbled in contentment. He thoroughly enjoyed her body stretched out on top of his. Their sweaty limbs tangled, both of them still breathing hard and their hearts beating fast. He felt absolutely euphoric right now.

Sakura sat up, which pushed his flaccid length just a little deeper in her. She wasn't ready to let go of him yet. She trailed her hands down his flat chest sensually, and up her own body to give him a bit of a show. She knew he was spent and she wanted him to rest, but she was still aroused by him and his body, to the point where she couldn't help herself. She ground herself against him, closing her eyes with pleasure.

Kakashi watched her in fascination. "You really are trying to kill me. You're completely insatiable," he remarked with a sigh. She reached for his hands that rested on the bed, and brought them up to her breasts. He wasn't about to stop her from using his body for her pleasure, he just wished he was hard enough to help her out. He played with her breasts as she undulated on him, with her head thrown back. She was a vision.

"If you do end up killing me, just leave me. This is the perfect way to die with you on top of me. Riding me to death, like my carnal desire," Kakashi teased.

"There's no way I'd let you die now, especially since there are numerous times in our future when we will both feel as euphoric as this again." She gripped his length again with her inner muscles, and she was a little surprised when she felt him stiffen in her.

"Looks like you're not quite ready to die on me yet," she said, provoking him.

Knowing that it would still be at least an hour before he got completely fully hard again, he tried to get her to accept this. "Sakura, I need some time," Kakashi pleaded.

"I know, Kakashi, it's okay." She bent down and kissed him on the lips. He moaned when she nipped his bottom lip. She leaned back and continued to grind on top of him. She placed her hands over his, and helped him squeeze her breasts, and then she continued her exploration of her own body ending with one hand on her clit. She started rubbing it in frenzy, trying to bring herself to climax once more.

Kakashi couldn't believe that she was masturbating while still on him—with him still in her. She was a fantasy come to life. And because she was so sensitive from his earlier ministrations, it wasn't long before she was moaning again in climax. He helped her stay upright on him as she came down from her high. After the first few waves of pleasure passed over her, he gently pulled her forward so he could kiss her and so that she could rest on him. Unfortunately before he could stop it, he slipped out of her, earning him an unhappy moan from her. All of their combined fluids dripping out of her and on to his still mostly soft member.

"Sakura." He nuzzled her cheek. "Just fall asleep now." Kakashi was trying to entice her, as waves of drowsiness consumed him. He was falling asleep himself, thoroughly fulfilled and exhausted.

"Kakashi," she murmured, "messy," she said. She was obviously completely out of it.

"I know. It's okay." Kakashi tried to convince her.

However, before Sakura completely fell asleep, she gathered what remained of her energy and got off of Kakashi. She left the room, and soon came back with a towel and two glasses of water. She put the glasses of water on the side table and examined Kakashi. She wiped him down and cleaned up the mess they had made. She could tell that he was still sensitive, and as was she. She felt a little bad about abusing him.

"Sorry about the last bit." Sakura blushed.

Kakashi chuckled, "No reason to apologize."

But he could see that she was not convinced. He took her hand, and made her sit down beside him. "Sakura there is no aspect of this evening that I didn't unconditionally take delight in. So stop worrying." In a rather tender move, he brought her hand to his mouth and kissed the back of it. "Now come back to bed."

She nodded her head, but reached for the water. She gave one to him and she downed hers, he took a few sips but then passed it back to her. He waited for her to crawl into bed with him.

He adjusted his legs so that he could pull the covers out from beneath him and pulled them back. Sakura lay down beside him, but Kakashi picked her up and moved her to lie back on top of him, and then adjust the covers over them both.

"There. That's better. Now stay here and go to sleep," he whispered, and wrapped his hands around her lower back, stopping her from moving anywhere.

Sakura rested her head on his chest, and she could hear his heartbeat steadily. It was the most reassuring sound in the world to her tonight. With a sigh, she let herself fall asleep, surrounded by Kakashi's heat from his embrace, his masculine scent, and the strong sound of his heart. It was perfect.

* * *

Sakura slowly woke up to the land of the living. She felt so ecstatic and euphoric; it was hard to choose one. Without even opening her eyes, she knew that she was still on top of Kakashi. She could feel the rise and fall of his chest under her, his hands on her back. Her legs rested on either side of his thighs, her core resting against his abdomen. But he was still asleep.

As good of shape as she was in, she still felt a degree of soreness between her legs. She couldn't believe that she actually had sex with Kakashi. Over the past few weeks, things had been obviously changing between them, and she knew that this was the inevitable result of their flirting. But even after an emotional mission, she honestly hadn't expected him to follow her home and then end up in her bed—doing everything he did to make her feel glorious.

Her childhood had been spent in the belief of her love for a conceited boy, who would rather face horrors than be with her. Sakura was glad that she finally outgrew that stage of her life. She had had a few one night stands with various guys, but nothing had ever materialized from those nights either.

And now she had slept with Kakashi, it felt like the most natural thing in the world. It terrified her when he turned up hurt on this mission. It terrified her when she saw that he was scared. It terrified her when it was up to only her to save him. So many things could have happened that would have stopped her from being able to save him. It scared her so much to even comprehend her own feelings.

Although now with him alive and underneath her, her feelings for him were undeniable. However, for now, she decided to store her dissection of her deeper emotions for another day. She had an undeniably sexy man underneath her, and parts of him were beginning to wake up.

She tried moving a little to see if anything would wake him up. But he didn't. He was completely spent from not only the mission but from last night as well. She opened her eyes and looked at him. He had a bit of a smirk on his beautiful face that he hid from the world—but right now he looked entirely peaceful and completely asleep.

Carefully, she slipped off of him and she watched him to see if he woke up. But he still didn't. She nearly giggled with how out of it he was. _What a poor ninja he is this morning_ , she's thought.

She kneeled on the bed and looked at him again. His hair was a complete mess. He had one hand resting under his head, and his other that had previously rested on her back, had fallen to his stomach, resting just where the blanket stopped. Just where his 'V' was and on top of that silvery trail of hair between his belly button and his erection. Sakura licked her lips. He had barely let her play with him last night. He had stopped her every attempt last night—but today was a new day and right now he was at her mercy.

She carefully pulled the sheet back to fully expose him. She looked at him in wonder. He was mostly erect, and he was already huge. It's no wonder why she was sore. She looked back at his face—still completely out of it. _Perfect_! She thought.

Sakura wanted to wake him up in her own way. She reached forward and wrapped her hand around his erection delicately as to not startle him. A bead of cum started to come out of the tip. She bent down and licked away the salty treat. It was musky and salty, and entirely him. She continued stroking him with her hand, and started licking him with her tongue. She licked down his shaft, as her hand tenderly cupped his balls. She took the tip of his erection fully into her mouth and sucked. She heard Kakashi moan. Apparently the action was enough to wake him up.

"Ugghhh… Sakura?" He asked in surprise, looking down at her, still half asleep.

With a slurp and a pop, she let his erection slip out of her mouth. She looked up at him with a grin. "Good morning Kakashi," she smiled. "Did you sleep well?" she asked as she licked his tip again.

"Oh fuck..." he groaned and dropped his head back on to the bed.

"I didn't think you would mind me waking you up like this." She trailed her tongue up his length again, waiting for his response.

Kakashi moaned. "You can wake me up like this whenever you'd like." Kakashi dragged a hand through his hair.

"Since you didn't let me play with you at all last night, I intend to play with you until you cry out my name—loudly." She said as she focused entirely on his erection. She took him into her mouth and moved her tongue around his girth.

Kakashi looked down at her once more as she enveloped him back into her mouth. He reached out to her hair and tucked it behind her ear, he wanted to watch her drive him wild. He was too big to fully fit into her mouth, but she took in as much as she could.

When she looked up at his face she loved his reaction. Groaning and moaning her name was exactly her goal. She could tell that he was barely able to stop himself from thrusting upwards. He felt that he was totally losing himself, and that she loved having this control over him.

He moved his hands to the bed sheets and gripped them tightly, throwing his head back, and he tried not to move his hips, as she continued pleasuring him so thoroughly. Kakashi could barely contain himself any longer. "Mmmmm... Sakura..." he groaned under his breath.

"Mmmmm, not loud enough, Kakashi," she hummed against his straining erection. She grasped his erection with her hand, and pumped it slowly, moving it forward slightly, so that there was room for her to pay more attention to his testicles. There was something about balls that she enjoyed. With her other hand she cupped them and brought them closer. She tentatively licked them, before popping one into her mouth and suckling hard. She continued stroking his erection with increasing speed all the while sucking his testicles. After a moment, she let go of his balls with a wet pop, and moved her head back to his erection and took him into her warm mouth once more.

For some reason he was withholding from orgasming. She knew he was so close, so she did what she could to send him over. She grasped his balls again, with her fingers reaching back to stroke just behind his testicles. "Come for me Kakashi. Cum in my mouth. Just let go," she said as she threw his words from last night back at him.

Kakashi looked down at this vixen sucking his cock and asking him to cum in her mouth and it violently threw him over the edge. He couldn't help but push his hips up a little and throw his head back as tremours racked his body.

"Ahhhhh! Sakura!" he called out for her. His balls tightened as he came in her mouth. One squirt, after another, after another, and she swallowed it all. Only a little dripped out of her mouth, before she quickly licked it up. Kakashi panted as he felt like he had briefly floated off to another plane of existence. His eyes were closed as he listened to his blood pumping through his veins. He felt Sakura move up to lay alongside him again, resting a hand on his chest over his heart, tracing a finger over his skin.

Sakura loved feeling his heartbeat go wild all because of what she did to him. She smiled broadly, "Good morning, Kakashi. Did you sleep well?" she asked once more.

It took a while for his heavy breathing to normalize after such a strong orgasm. He lazily opened his eyes and shifted his head so he could look right at her. He reached out and touched her face with one hand, stroking her cheek then her lips with his thumbs. "Good morning Sakura. I slept very well, thank you." There was no cocky remark, no flirting—only pure bliss shown in his eyes. His hand on her face, tenderly stroking her cheek. This moment seemed much more intense and intimate than the one they just had.

She moved her hand that was on his chest to his face and brow. She briefly played with his hair before also moving her hand to stroke his cheek and lips.

A deep intensity crossed his face as he watched her. He moved his hand to the back of her head, and brought her into him for a fervent kiss. Half of his body covered hers as he moved to shift the power between them. With his lips hovering over hers, he whispered to her. "Mmmm, Sakura. How are you this morning?" he asked as he traced her lips with his tongue.

He felt such a passion for her this morning, and he was beginning to feel as though it had little to do with the fantastic sex last night or this morning's stunning deep-throating. Typically he tried not to spend the night in lover's beds, either because of awkwardness from the drunken declivity or from the usually unwanted intimacy of the morning after. However, with Sakura he craved that affection with her, almost desperately. He couldn't get enough of her. He placed his nose at the edge of her jaw where it meets her ear and he just breathed deeply. He was completely relaxed when Sakura spoke up.

"Kakashi, are you okay?" She caressed his hair, down to his neck, shoulders and back.

"I'm perfect," he breathed into her neck. "Let's just stay here for the day." He slung an arm across her chest, and a leg over hers, pinning her in place.

"As much as I would enjoy that, there are some errands that I have to take care of before I go back to work." He burrowed into her more, pulling her closer into him. "Plus we need to turn in the mission report to Naruto."

"Let Tenzo and Genma deal with that," he argued as he sucked on her ear, trying to sway her with temptation.

"Kakashi, it was our mission, plus I need to update your file with the additional medical incidents that you've had." Sakura countered.

"No," he resisted, holding on to her.

She laughed. "Kakashi, you can stay here as long as you want, but I have to get up and do things today." He wasn't releasing her, so it seemed that she was going to have to out muscle him. "Come on, Kakashi. Let go of me." Sakura giggled as she was trying to struggle out of his grasp, but he wasn't letting go.

"No."

"Yes." Sakura continued to laugh as she tried to get away from him.

Kakashi started sucking on her neck just below her ear. A devious thought came to him, as he started to suck on one spot just long enough to leave a mark.

"Kakashi! Did you just give me a hickey?!" Sakura faked being outraged, but was baffled by his actions. "What are you? Sixteen years old?!" Sakura flipped them over so that she was on top of him, restraining his hands above his head and holding his legs down with her own. "What's gotten into you?"

Kakashi didn't answer, just stared up at her. He was trying to figure out for himself why he was acting like this. It basically came down to him not wanting to share her with anyone else for the day. He had never really sought out this type of intimacy before, so he didn't know how to act or what was expected of him. He didn't even understand what provoked him to give her a hickey. He wasn't sixteen years old—he was over forty. Staking a claim like that was childish, but at the same time, he couldn't help himself.

"You're acting weird." Sakura gave him a puzzled look and waited for an explanation.

Kakashi continued to give her a deadpan look. He wished he had his mask on, as he started to feel more and more exposed. He honestly didn't understand why he was acting like a child having a tantrum. So he resorted to his counter interrogation training, which he used to keep an impassive expression on his face—which probably wasn't the best move with a new lover.

Sakura looked down at him and sighed. "I wish you'd talk to me." She paused for a second, and then asked a question that she didn't really want the answer to. "Do you regret last night? And everything else that has happened between us?" She asked with a quiet uncertainty. She wasn't looking forward to the answer if it was going to be negative, but it would be better to know sooner rather than later if he had regrets.

Kakashi's eyes widened at her questions. "No!" He said quickly. He took a deep breath and repeated himself. "No. I don't regret it at all Sakura." He removed one of his hands from her grip, and reached out and caressed her face gently. "Sakura, so much has happened in the last 72 hours. After a rough day at work for you, I found you drunk at the bar, brought you back to my place, and you spent the night in my bed. Which, by the way, created all sorts of sexual tension for me. Then we get called out for an S-ranked assassination mission. I got critically wounded and you had to heal me in such a state. We're back for 5 minutes, and I come here. We have a fantastic night of mind blowing sex. And then you stun me by waking me up with an unreal blow job." Kakashi listed the highlights of the past few days. "I just want time to process it all. I want time away from the world. I want time to be grateful. And I want to spend it with you—undisturbed."

The breath in her lungs snagged at the mention of some of the things they'd gone through in the past few days, but a smile remained on her lips as she remembered the happier moments. "You're right. I'm sorry," she said as Kakashi gently cupped her cheek. "I don't know why I didn't think of it that way. I guess I feel compelled to just keep moving rather than absorbing everything. I figure that as long as I don't stop, things can't catch up," Sakura said wistfully.

"Sakura, your method is probably healthier than the way that I tend to handle things. I'm not exactly known for dealing with emotions well," Kakashi said with a chuckle. He was trying his best to make light of the heavy atmosphere. "Can we spend the day here without the rest of the world?"

"Of course, Kakashi. I would thoroughly enjoy spending the day with you." She paused. "If I promise not to leave the apartment today, can you do something for me?"

Kakashi sat up and smiled. "Of course. What can I do for you?" He pecked her on her lips.

"Can you summon Pakkun? I just want to get the mission report out of my apartment and to Naruto. Then I can't be tempted to do something like leave," Sakura asked shyly. She couldn't completely abandon being responsible.

"You can be really nitpicky about certain things, you know," Kakashi sighed and nodded. "I will spend 10 minutes to write out mine, and then Pakkun can take both of ours to Naruto. That way you won't be tempted to nag me about it," he teased as he swatted at her bare butt.

Sakura squeaked and huffed at him. "I don't nag. But deal!" She kissed his cheek. "While you write yours, I'll go figure out what food I can put together for breakfast."

"Good, because I'm starving."

* * *

Please leave me a kind review if you liked my chapter.


	11. Something Steamy

Thank you to my beta reader, TipsyRaconteur who helped me so much with all of the chapters so far.

A BIG thanks goes out to all of those of you have reviewed and checked in with me. I know this chapter is later than really any of us wanted it to be. I had truly hoped to stick to a two week posting schedule, however with everything that's going on in the world, I'm struggling too to stay positive enough to get into the mood to write. My muse has completely left me which has made it impossible to work on this story right now. However, I do have the rest plotted out, and even bits and pieces of it written, so I don't plan on abandoning this story. I'm too stubborn for that. 

This chapter is dedicated to the wonderful _**Sayurinomoe**_! Her art is so amazing, that I was inspired to write this smutty scene from a picture of hers. It's the background on her tumblr page. I highly recommend you checking her out, supporting one of our fandom's best artist in any way you can! I hear she likes coffee ~_^

Last, but not least, this is smut, if you are underage, I ask that you do not read it. Otherwise, you have been warned.

Enjoy!

* * *

Kakashi happily sauntered towards the main gate with a big smile hidden under his mask. He had just stopped by the hospital to let Sakura know that he was heading out for a few days. He caught her alone in her office with her head down, diligently focused on paperwork. At his interruption, she looked up at him with a startled look on her face that morphed into a deep blush—which was exactly what he had hoped to happen. Her smile and flushed look were two things he was going to fondly remember while out on his mission. It would also be what kept him going until he could come back and see her once more.

It surprised him when the thought came to him that he wanted to swing by and let her know that he was heading out. They hadn't put any labels or boundaries on whatever it was that they had going on—which typically suited him. However, he wanted to and felt the need to see her and inform her of his departure. He also enjoyed the quick, but passionate kiss they shared in her office—especially when she reacted to his fingers lightly touching her neck. Her sighs switched to a quiet but needy moan as he moved to caress the back of her head and hair.

In a matter of seconds, he had elicited a sexy groan from her, and he immediately could smell how aroused he got her. It was exactly what he needed to help him get through the next few days. He also hoped it would keep her on edge and wanting him when he came back to Konoha.

Finally arriving at the gates, only a few minutes past the appointed meeting time, he saw the team he was joining for this short mission. His skills as a tracker were still the best in the Nation, and he had great motivation to get this mission done as fast as he could.

Kakashi greeted his temporary teammates, having only seen them a few hours before when they had discussed logistics and game plans for a successful mission. Once standing beside them, he gave a nod and they leapt away simultaneously, leaving Konoha quickly, all of them eager to start the journey.

After Kakashi and his teammates had moved far enough away, a man crept slowly out of the shadows near the village entrance. He had come to stand where Kakashi had just been before he had departed from the gates. He kicked at the dirt and spit off to the side as he glared at the departing team. He sneered at their backs as he reached into his pocket and thumbed the edge of a kunai, letting the blade bite into his skin.

Casually, he pulled his hand out of the pocket and grinned at his thumb that was slowly oozing out blood.

It would only be a matter of time before he got what he wanted. He had worked too hard to get to where he was today. And he would get exactly what he needed.

He deserved it.

* * *

Letting out a satisfied sigh, Sakura sunk down into the hot bath that she had drawn for herself. It had been a busy enough day at the hospital that she figured she deserved a little bit of pampering and relaxation. She had washed and shaved before filling the tub, gotten herself a cup of tea and brought in a book—so everything was set.

She thought about how Kakashi had once commented that she didn't know how to relax—she obviously knew how, and if he was here, he would see she knew exactly how to unwind. Just because her way would be different from his—which would most likely be with his feet up and a porn book in hand—doesn't mean that it was any less effective; just different.

Even with him being so far away, it was hard to keep her mind off of him and everything they had done together. Without meaning to, she felt the heat rising to her cheeks as she recalled their time together. He had spent the night after their terrifying mission in her bed, and then most of the following day with her. They had spent the time getting to know each other intimately—learning each other's bodies in new ways. Seeking out what aroused the other, what made them sigh in contentment, and what made their hearts quicken before that blissful release. The amount of passion he showed her surprised her at first. She didn't know that he was capable of that type of intimacy—and now she would have a hard time forgetting it.

Kakashi had merely three days off before he was sent back out on another mission. This new venture was supposed to take two days, so he would likely be back tomorrow morning. When he stopped by her office at the hospital to let her know that he was leaving, it affected her in a way that she hadn't expected. She didn't know the boundaries of their budding relationship, but the fact that he made sure to let her know that he was going was startling but sweet.

Sakura sank further into the bubbles and let the warmth of the bath slowly force her body to relax. Sinking lower beneath the bubbles, the warmth from the bath slowly forced her body to relax. The day hadn't been anything extraordinary, just another busy day. She didn't have any other plans for the night, so a little bit of 'her' time was long overdue. So much had changed in the past few weeks—honestly, her mind was still reeling from it all, while her body was still jittery from the constant overstimulation. So with her hair pinned up, and everything that could possibly help her achieve a peaceful state, she settled into the evening.

She had only just cracked the spine of the book when she noticed another presence in her apartment. Whoever it was, they were masking their identity which set off her internal alarms. The only weapon she had available to her was the senbon that she had used to secure her hair in a bun on her head. But who would be stupid enough to come into her apartment without being invited in? She reached up to slowly draw the thin needle from her hair and hold it at the ready. Footsteps came through her hallway and briefly paused as they approached the door—until they took one final step into the open frame of the bathroom door. Without waiting for them to make the first move, she shot at the intruder.

Who happened to be her new lover.

"Fuck!" he yelped as he dodged the weapon shot at his neck. "I didn't think you'd mind me coming back early, but maybe I need to rethink that!" he laughed.

"Shit! Sorry! Wait, what are you doing here? Why did you hide your chakra signature? You're not supposed to be back until sometime tomorrow morning." Sakura felt mortified that she had nearly skewered Kakashi.

Still laughing, he moved further into the room. "I even showered before I came over here," he commented while ignoring all of her questions. He sat down on the edge of the tub and dipped a gloved hand into the hot water. "We finished early, and I wanted to see you again. And looks like I lucked out and caught you already naked for me."

He pushed his gloved hand deeper into the tub, slowly dragging it up her inner thigh. Sakura couldn't help her reaction—head tipping back, eyes closed and opening her legs a little wider for him. Sighing in pleasure, she couldn't help but stare at him with half-lidded eyes. Though she was trying to keep her book from dipping into the water, what he was doing felt too good and she was starting to lose herself in the feel of his hands on her body. Every inch his slick fingers moved up her thigh, the lower the pages of her textbook slipped closer to the water.

"I can see that you're trying to relax—and I think you're close, but this thick medical textbook is not the light reading that you should relax with. But I think I can help with that," he teased.

Her eyes shot open as the heavy book was lifted out of her hands. "Wait, I was reading that! Don't lose my place!" she shifted slightly to sit up more.

She watched as Kakashi grabbed her panties that were left on the counter with the rest of her clothing, and used them as a bookmark.

"Really? My underwear?" she asked exasperated.

"Well, it's either that _or_ I keep them. They were distracting me," he said playfully as he glanced over his shoulder at her. Turning to face her, he locked his eyes with hers, and slowly peeled away his vest, then his jounin shirt, and finally that incredibly sexy mesh top that ninja always wore.

It was a good thing that he had taken away her book, because as soon as she watched him peel off his last layer from his chest, she was sure her book would have been sinking to the bottom of the tub.

"I see that I have your attention, but apparently I still have to school you yet again in the art of relaxation," he said as he undid the buckle on his standard issued pants. He obviously had planned on not wearing his clothes for very long, since he hadn't bothered with any type of bindings on his ankles. Or anything beneath the pants, she noticed as they hung low on his hips.

She couldn't help ogling his body—especially eyeing that trail of silver hair that darted from his belly button to below his pants.

Being surrounded by ninja all the time meant that she had seen plenty of men in top physical shape—but knowing that she could touch that body, kiss, lick, rub and paw at that body, was enough to have her eyes glaze over with lust. Knowing that he wanted to do the same, was a powerful feeling.

Before dropping his pants, he reached into his back pocket and pulled out the little turquoise book that he brought nearly everywhere with him. She watched as he slowly pushed his pants over his hips to a puddle on the floor. Without breaking eye contact with her, he kicked them off to the side and stood in all of his glory, while sporting the biggest smug look on his face.

"Lean forward," he instructed as he moved towards the tub. She watched him approach after she did as he asked. He stepped into the tub behind her, and as he sank down the water level rose and splashed over the edge of the tub. But in typical washroom fashion there was a drain in the floor as well, so the overflow quickly drained away.

She had never shared a private bath with a man before—it was vastly different from the public hot springs that she had visited with ladies over the years. This time, it was just the two of them.

"Here, hold this," he said, as he passed her his treasured book. She took it and made sure that it stayed well above the water level, knowing that he'd be upset if it got wet.

He grabbed her by the hips, and pulled her back between his spread legs, resting directly against his half hard arousal. But his hands didn't stop there—they brushed against her core, then moved up her stomach, across her ribs, briefly cupping her breasts and tweaking her nipples.

"You're such a tease," she sighed when he halted touching her provocatively. She leaned back and rested her head on his shoulder while he chuckled at her frustrated grunt.

"You have a lot of stuff around your tub that I didn't notice before."

"Well I'm trying to relax and so I thought I should be prepared for anything."

He laughed harder this time. "You are always over prepared. I mean, do you really need the rubber ducky?" he asked as he reached for it.

She squeaked and grabbed for it first—but he saw her play for it, and got a hand on it before she did.

"What's with your reaction?" he asked incredulously.

She mumbled under her breath, obviously saying something, but he couldn't make it out.

"What are you so embarrassed about?"

She huffed and covered her face with her free hand. "It was a gag gift from Ino. I didn't know what it was until I brought it home," she enunciated clearly through clenched teeth.

"What is it?" he asked as he squeezed it, expecting it to squeak. Suddenly he was surprised as it came to life and vibrated in his hand. "She gave you a rubber ducky vibrator?"

"Yes." She lowered her eyes while her face heated up.

"And you thought you were going to use it tonight? While you were reading a medical textbook? I mean, I know you like your job, but do you really like it that much?"

With her free hand, she reached back and threaded her fingers through his hair and lightly pulled back. "Brat. You should be so thankful that I like my job as much as I do."

He bent his head down and kissed her damp shoulder. "I am eternally thankful to you." He continued to pepper kisses across her shoulder, to her neck, to that spot right behind her ear. "Start reading," he breathed.

"What? Now?"

"Yes."

"Where?"

"Chapter 3 starts on page 43—that's a good place to start."

She shivered as he sucked on her earlobe. "But you're distracting me with your tongue." She pushed her body back into his hard one, loving the feeling of his frame lining hers.

He was obviously enjoying her reactions to his attention.

"Then I'll stop distracting you, so that you can concentrate," he said as he pulled his lips back from her heated skin. "Read it out loud."

"I'm not reading your porn out to you!" she huffed, seemingly too embarrassed to repeat what the dirty minded Sannin wrote.

He laughed, "Why not? I'm sure you'll enjoy it!"

"I think you'll enjoy it, and my embarrassment in reading it!"

"Shall I read it out to you then? I don't mind—"

"No, I don't think I could handle you reading it out either."

"Good, because I really want to hear you read, and then I can find other ways to keep my mouth busy," Kakashi murmured in her ear.

One of his arms snaked across her front, pinning her against him while his other hand slowly—tantalizingly slow—traced her inner thigh as it crept downwards. "You were going to start reading?" His tongue darted out and traced the edge of her ear.

She could hear his breath coming out in fast and deep pants. She shifted slightly since his erection pressed tightly against her back, but with one hand holding onto his precious book and another gripped in his hair, she didn't have a free hand to reach back and entice his thick shaft that was pinned between them. She did as he requested and began to read his erotic fiction to him.

"Junko leaned forward, pressing against him," Sakura began, but was already hard-pressed to stay focused on the words she was reading with the way Kakashi's hands moved over her.

"'You make me want you in ways that I can't explain'," Kakashi whispered in her ear, repeating word-for-word what the lead male character said in the book.

Sakura shivered at his voice. She shouldn't be surprised that he'd know this book by heart.

"Junko moved to straddle General Asahiko, rubbing her heated core against the bulge in his pants. 'I'll take you in any way that you'll have me, General.' " Sakura looked at the pictures illustrated in the salacious story. The General had bared Junko's chest, and cupped each breast delicately, pinching each nipple, bringing them to a stiff peak. Kakashi mimicked what was happening in the book, making Sakura squirm against him. She gasped loudly as he pinched her nipples more intensely than she had ever experienced before—but she liked it. She was so easily enthralled by his ministrations.

She tightened her grip in his hair, groaning as she pulled his head towards her shoulder. He sucked on her neck, electing sighs and moans of pleasure from her. Briefly ignoring the book in her hands, she rocked against him, lost in the sensations he aroused in her.

"Go on," he enticed.

She briefly brought her hand down from his hair to turn the page, then quickly weaved it back into his silver locks, forcing his head where she wanted it. One of his hands had left her breast as it skimmed down to her center.

"Junko threw her head back with a loud moan as General Asahiko ground his rod against her core. 'More,' she moaned. The General unfastened the clips to her clothes, desperate to get her naked—" Sakura tried to continue, but when Kakashi teased her own center, reading became increasingly more difficult.

"I can't—"

"Read."

"You're distracting me too much."

"Then I will stop."

Sakura grabbed his hand and kept it placed over her center, not allowing him to stop playing with her.

"Fine, I'll read, but you continue," she moaned as she directed one of his fingers to play with her clit.

"Then you better start again," he said teasingly, as he tapped his finger against her clit a few times to get her attention and to encourage her to play along and continue reading.

"Junko continued to grind against the General, allowing him to remove the rest of her clothes and caress her bare body. They were so caught up in their carnal relations that they didn't notice when two other captains entered his private quarters. The two new men stopped at the entranceway and stared at the couple as they continued their foreplay." Sakura stopped for a moment. "Wait, is this going where I think it's going?"

"Why don't you read and find out?" Kakashi said as he once more kissed her hairline just behind her ear, still randomly tapping her clit, distracting her on and off.

Sakura's breath caught every time he touched her pearl of pleasure, interrupting her words as she tried to continue to read. "The two captains moved to stand near the General and Junko, watching the General push Junko's breasts together and suck on them. 'Can they join us?' Junko asked the General. At first he was surprised, but then he nodded his head, allowing them to approach—" Sakura stopped briefly. "I knew it! Really Kakashi, a foursome?" Sakura whispered breathlessly. He was still playing with her, keeping her on edge.

Kakashi enjoyed watching her body jerk and tremble as he teased it. "Keep going," he murmured. Her eyes closed briefly when he removed his hand from her clit. She breathed a sigh of relief until his hand moved back down.

She took in a breath to continue reading, however when he placed the rubber ducky between her legs and turned it on, her breath came out in a whoosh with a low moan.

"The deal is, you read, I'll play. Keep going," he repeated as he pressed the toy into her.

"Mmm… As the two captains approached they ahhh...removed their uniforms. Junko turned her head as their engorged cocks sprang free from their pants," Sakura said. As she read, she was unable to stop the moans and gasps as Kakashi teased her center.

"The men moved to stand behind Junko, unsure what to do next, as Junko mmmm... rose from the General's lap to stand between the three men, and ahhhh! She encouraged him to ahhhh, stand up as she reached for the General's buckle, she fell to her knees before them." Sakura couldn't help but pause as Kakashi's teasing was bringing her so close to climaxing.

Sakura rolled her hips against Kakashi, eliciting a deep groan out of him.

"Don't stop, Kakashi," Sakura groaned, chasing her peak.

Kakashi pulled the toy away from her body. "That's not what it says," he growled teasingly. "Keep reading."

"Ahhh...Junko took the General's cock in her mouth and bobbed her head up and down, while blindly reaching her hands out to the two other men—mmmm Kakashi, don't stop. The captains pushed their hardened cocks into her hands, as the General pulled her head off him and suddenly picked her up and sat down on the chair. The General brushed the tip of his engorged member along her opening, pushing it up and into her wet heat—no more, Kakashi, I… please I can't take it anymore."

Sakura quickly withdrew her hand from his hair and plunged it into the water and covered his hand with hers.

"Kakashi, please no more teasing," she begged again. Sakura couldn't help but moan and undulate her hips against the toy and his own body, and it wasn't long before he gave in and placed the rubber ducky back against her.

"We'll save the rest of this chapter for later," he said as he took the book from her hand. "We'll pick up on page 47 next time." He closed the book and gently tossed it out of the washroom. He placed his hands back under water and against her heated flesh.

To give them both better support, he brought his legs up so that his knees were out of the water. Sakura immediately grasped them and used them as leverage to pin herself against Kakashi as he teased and tantalized her body.

It was hardly a minute more when Sakura let out a loud moan and slumped against his strong chest. Her head rested heavily on his shoulder as her body pulsed with pleasure.

"Fuck, that is hot, Sakura. Watching you come is the best part of my day." Kakashi enjoyed staring at her from this angle—her breasts heaving as she panted. "You're beautiful when you come, Sakura. I'm so glad I came back early."

Sakura was having trouble forming words. Having his hands on her was usually enough to get her most of the way to an orgasm. But to have him come over unexpectedly and bring her such pleasure was by far the best way to relax.

"Mmmm... Kakashi," she sighed.

"I'm not done with you yet, you know," he said as he threaded one arm under her legs, and before she knew it, she was being picked up clear out of the warm water and into the chilly air.

"Wait! What are you doing, Kakashi? You're going to make a mess with the water everywhere." She wrapped her arms around his neck as he continued to move away from the bathtub. Water was dripping all over the place, but he didn't pay it any mind.

Coming to stand beside the counter he sat her butt down on the cold surface. She gasped as her warm body touched something so cold and hard.

"Stay there, just like this," he said as he grasped her hips and brought her to the edge of the counter and pushed her thighs out wide. "Perfect," he purred. Leaning forward, he let his warm body press into hers while capturing her lips. He gave her a quick kiss, but then broke it off before it became too deep —just something to keep her hazy and enthralled.

"Kakashi," she moaned, caught between the kiss and the way she was completely on display for him. She tried to press her wet thighs together, but Kakashi was having none of it. He placed a hand on either thigh, pressing downwards to gently keep them spread open for him.

"What did I just say?" he demanded as he knelt on the floor before her. Watching him made her breath quicken, even though her breathing was still a little fast from her previous orgasm, which was only just seconds before. She was dripping water all over the place, as was he, but it seemed to only be bugging her.

Keeping eye contact with her and her red face, he moved his head to the sensitive spots between her legs and gave a long and unhurried lick along her core. He took such pleasure watching her face as it curved in pleasure. Her embarrassment was quickly forgotten.

"Earlier, when I said it was hot that you came in my hands, I lied," he said as he gave her another long lick. "This is hotter."

"Ahhh, 'kashi," Sakura moaned. Giving in, she leaned back as far as she could, resting on one arm while reaching forward with the other and placed it on his head. She thoroughly loved threading her fingers through his hair. It was as if she had power over him, but the reality of the situation was that he was in complete control.

So far, the best part about her liaison with Kakashi was the dynamic between them: their balance of power and who took control in bed switched back and forth, both eager to bring the other pleasure. She was thrilled with him taking over this time, as she knew he enjoyed it as well. However, she wished she could see more of his body as he pleasured her, but the way his eyes held hers was enough to satiate her—for now.

Giving into him was the only thing she could do. She tried to let her body go slack, knowing that he wouldn't let her fall off the counter. He smirked at her briefly while wrapping his arm around her butt to hold her in place as his tongue continued to make her delirious.

His talented tongue switched between lapping at her heated core, cleaning up the remnants of earlier orgasm, and moving up to wrap his lips around her clit and suckling. She was having a hard time keeping still and quiet.

But she felt that if she didn't keep her wits about her to some degree, she would slide right off the counter and—

"Sakura," he murmured into her heated skin. "I can feel you over thinking and not relaxing. I'm not going to let you fall, just let me take over and take care of you," he said between kisses and licks on her mound.

"But—" Sakura started.

"No buts," he growled teasingly, stopping her from protesting. "Okay, since you're still able to think straight, it's time for me to step it up a notch." Grinning, he slyly moved one hand around and slipped two fingers into her and pressed in an upwards motion.

The tension drained immediately from her body as he stroked her from the inside.

"There, how does that feel? Still able to think straight?" he taunted her.

A faltering groan was her only answer as she lost herself to him and the way he was making her feel. A few other syllables that sounded a little like his name came out of her as he sucked on her clit and teased her g-spot.

"This is definitely the best part of my day so far. But I can't wait to sink all the way into you and feel you pulse around my cock," he said huskily to her, as he caught her heated gaze with his own.

The hand in his hair tightened momentarily. "Then what are you waiting for, Kakashi," she moaned.

"For you to come." As much as he wanted to push into her warmth right now, teasing her to the brink of her sanity was becoming his favourite pastime.

"Mmm… Kakashi I want to come with you deep inside me," she moaned as her body teetered on the edge of bliss. "Come Kakashi, slip into me so we can both feel good."

His breath caught in his chest after she whispered exactly what he longed to do. Not able to resist any longer, Kakashi finally gave in to her demands and stood up. He was rock hard and already seeping precome from his tip. Taking his penis by the base, he gently pushed the head along her wet folds, loving her reaction. She moaned and writhed as if she was in intense pain, but he knew that it wasn't pain that she was feeling. Far from it, in fact.

"Kakashi," she moaned as she tried to rock her hips upwards.

"Yes, Sakura, I know what you need," he murmured. Rubbing the head against her hypersensitive clit was enough to distract her momentarily. He placed the tip at her opening and pushed in slowly enough to give her time to adjust to him, but he didn't stop until he was as deep as he could go.

Sakura gasped and pushed her head back. "Oh god! Kakashi, you feel so good. So perfect inside me. I'm never going to get enough of this."

"Good, because I don't plan on stopping anytime soon," he said as he reached up and cupped her head with his hand. He leaned forward and captured her bottom lip in between his.

Moaning into his mouth, she wrapped her arms around his neck to deepen the kiss. To entice him to start moving, she circled her legs around him and clenched her inner muscles, tightening around his member.

"Oh fuck, Sakura, don't do that just yet," he growled at her.

"But I know you like it," she mumbled against his lips, doing it once more.

Kakashi let out a grunt and a sigh all at once. He was struggling to not give in to the amazing way he was feeling and come before she did again. He wasn't the type of man to leave his partner behind in any situation.

"If you don't stop that, this is going to be over too quick." He slipped his arms under her knees and around her butt. Without any notice, he picked her up, all the while keeping himself deep inside of her. "You better hang on because I'm going to have you right here, just like this."

Sakura shuddered as she sunk deeper onto Kakashi. She had no leverage in this position, so all she could do was cling to him and let him do whatever he wanted. His hands grasped under her, pulling upwards until she could only feel the tip inside of her, then pushed her back down on himself. Each time he did this, Sakura couldn't stop herself from moaning louder and louder. All that could be heard over the sounds of two bodies mating, were her gasps, moans, cries and sighs, peppered with his own husky groans and whispers.

Kakashi shifted his position slightly, keeping one hand around her bum to continue to support them in their movements, while his other hand moved to cup her head. Threading his fingers through her hair, he pulled her head back, exposing her neck to him. His mouth latched on to the bare skin, covering it with kisses, nips and languid strokes with his tongue. It gave him pleasure to feel the vibrations in her throat with each noise she made because of him.

He could feel himself get closer and closer to his peak with each noise she made. She was like a spring that was ready to snap. At the same time, he could feel the tension build up in her body as he continued to pump deeply inside of her.

"Kakashi, I'm so close...mmmm don't stop," she sighed as she tightened her grip around him. She held his face against her neck and clenched her legs around his torso, unwilling to let go what was bringing her such magnificent pleasure. She clung to him as she felt him adjust their positions enough so that he was hitting her at a new angle. She felt his breath catch while tremours coursed through his body.

Burying his face into her neck he slowed his movements and panted into her ear. "Mmmm, Sakura… I can't last much longer. Fuck you feel so good," he huffed as he continued the slow and torturous pace.

Instead of a quick and rough ride, his slower and deeper movements were what finally pushed her over the edge and spiraling into bliss. The hitch of her breath and the sound of her cries as she climaxed, edged him on. But it was the feel of her orgasm and the rippling against his erection was all he needed to send him deep into his own orgasm.

Groaning loudly as Sakura raked her nails up his back as he squeezed her body to his. He pushed himself deep into her as he felt his body pulse and flow into hers. With each pulse, he pulled out and pushed himself back into her with a sigh.

He moaned her name and slumped against the counter when he finally finished cumming deep inside of her, still holding her against his body tightly. Kakashi nuzzled his nose into her neck, panting against her flushed skin. Beneath his lips, he could feel her heartbeat hammering.

Sakura held fast to Kakashi as her heart beated wildly out of control. If she didn't know any better, she would have sworn that her heart was going to jump out of her chest. After each time they slept together, she was sure that the last time was the best she'd ever had—and then he proved her wrong time after time.

"Kakashi," she murmured out his name slowly, still feeling the intensity of a passionate coupling. "Don't let me go yet. I don't think my legs could hold me."

Peppering kisses along her shoulder and neck, he murmured to her. "Don't worry, I'm not going to let you go yet. You feel too good just the way you are." Sighing more to himself he continued to speak, "I don't think I can get enough of you."

Sakura's heart thundered in her chest for another reason now: she knew that sex would complicate things with a man that she already felt something towards. But it was too late now. She was head over heels for him. Though she knew that what he said wasn't meant to have any deeper meaning behind it, since this was just sex to him. But it wasn't to her anymore.

Pulling her head back a little, she shifted her eyes to his. Watching him carefully for a moment while his eyes were closed and his body still shuddering from his orgasm, she felt her heart clench.

He was gorgeous inside and out. She didn't want to imagine never seeing him like this again.

It dawned on her that she was falling in love with him.

Sakura's eyes widened in shock as her thoughts took over. Still feeling him deep inside of her and her own body humming around his; maybe she was feeling these intense emotions just because of the sex.

But when Kakashi opened his dark charcoal eyes and looked into her eyes, she couldn't stop the emotion on her own from showing. His next actions surprised her even more. Keeping his eyes open and on hers, he kissed her nose and then rested his forehead against her own.

Yep, she was falling for him, and not just because of the fantastic sex.

"You okay there, Sakura?"

Trying to hide the insane emotions that she was feeling, she started laughing, trying to feign ignorance.

She desperately tried to steer the conversation away from her actualized feelings to anything else. "I see what you mean about your relaxation techniques. They definitely work better than mine," she ended lamely.

He responded by nuzzling her cheek and whispering to her, "I'm always here if you ever need my help with relaxing, or anything else for that matter," he said sincerely.

Stunned once more into silence, Sakura held her breath until she could wrap her brain around it. Everything he was saying was making her think that this meant more than it should.

Startled out of her thoughts by a gentle pat on her butt, Kakashi smiled at her. "I think we need another shower until I put you to bed."

"Are you going to stick around to wash my back?" she asked teasingly, hoping that it wouldn't betray her sudden desire to have him stay due to her much stronger feelings.

"Of course, and I'll even stay around until morning, just to make sure you don't do anything else but relax."

"Ohh, I like the sounds of that. I'll even make you breakfast as a thank you."

Kakashi smiled once more at her and slowly began to rise to his feet while still hanging on to her.

"Deal, now let's get cleaned up."

* * *

Late the next morning, Kakashi cheerfully walked through the hallways of the Hokage's tower. People smiled and waved as he walked past, all of them recognizing him as the Rokudaime. He smiled back at the people, nodding and sometimes murmuring a polite 'hello' to the individuals whose names he knew. He could smell the countless files and old musty books that the tower held—it reminded him of his own time here as the Kage. He was proud that he had done his duty until Naruto had been ready to take over. However, he had been elated when he was released from the tedium of paperwork that was associated with being the Hokage.

Finally coming up to the double doors that led into the main office, he hesitated for a moment. With his acute sense of smell, he could only detect Naruto and Shikamaru inside, and he didn't think they would mind his interruption.

Without knocking, he entered his old office and gave the men a lazy smile and moved to stand in front of Naruto's desk. He tossed his completed mission scroll towards Naruto, who was surprised by the action, but caught it regardless with his quick reflexes.

Kakashi wasn't known for long drawn-out conversations, especially since his mind was wrapped up in all things Sakura—her scent, remembering the sounds of her moans, the touch of her hot skin, slick with sweat from another enthusiastic mating, for lack of a better word. "If there's nothing else, then I'll be on my way."

"Wait Kakashi, we have some news," Naruto called out hastily before Kakashi could exit.

He paused for a moment, giving the pair his typical lazy grin that reached up to his eyes. "Oh? News about what?"

Naruto slid his gaze to Shikamaru and nodded at the adviser, who sighed listlessly. He cleared his throat and began to relate the new information to Kakashi. "We sent out an investigation squad to examine the battle scene near Takigakure, where you were ambushed. Where Genma and Tenzo were injured," he reminded Kakashi—except Kakashi didn't need reminding of that. His memory was exceptional, including that deplorable day.

"Ahh. What of it?" Kakashi tried to keep his demeanour nonchalant, even though he felt his heart rate quicken.

"It's not good Kakashi," Naruto spoke up. "The bodies were still there 24 hours after the attack."

Kakashi was thoroughly surprised. "Which means—"

Shikamaru sighed irritably after being interrupted. "Which means that they were not affiliated with any nation. They were rogue-nin, and no one wanted to clean up the mess—no one was urged enough to hide secrets. The investigation team searched the surrounding area and found all three bodies—two at the main site of the skirmish, and one 300 meters away. They only found one piece of evidence that showed that this wasn't a mistake. They didn't happen upon you. They knew where you would be and positioned themselves accordingly. We found a note on one of the bodies that outlined there would be two brunets and one grey-haired Konoha ANBU operatives. They grey hair man was the main target, while the other two were to be taken out after the fact if required."

As Shikamaru reported the results from the investigation to him, Kakashi couldn't help but clench his hands into tight fists. He became hyper aware of everything that was being said as his instincts came into sharp focus. While his posture remained the relaxed, slightly slouching man that he always appeared as, in the safety of the village, the hairs on his arm stood up, his nose picked up everyone walking past the Hokage's office, and he tuned his chakra to detect all humans around him. His years of methodical training told his body to be ready at a moment's notice for things to go awry.

Shikamaru instantly reacted to Kakashi's changed aura—he cleared his throat once more and stood a little straighter, before continuing the debriefing. "We've analyzed the paper and the writing from the note. We know they milled the paper in Konoha, and our analysts can tell that whoever wrote on the paper was most likely male and definitely right-handed. They deduced that the author was seemingly strong because of the depth of the pen that was pressed into the paper, and most likely a trained shinobi."

The three men paused as they processed each other's reactions. Kakashi's mind was racing as he uttered, "He's one of us."

Naruto quietly nodded his head. "Yes, that's the conclusion that we've also come to."

"I know this is difficult to pinpoint, but do you know of anyone who holds a grudge against you? For _any_ reason?" Shikamaru inquired.

While Kakashi knew that he shouldn't be shocked, he was. Someone in this village held such a deep hatred for him that they wanted him dead. It stunned him to a degree that he wasn't used to feeling. Naruto's office was starting to feel tight and confined, which was only making him more edgy.

"I can't think of anyone who would hate me that much to take action against me," he conceded softly, his mind racing through the faces of the people he considered to be his responsibility. "What about the assassination attempt on the Kazekage? Is that a part of this corruption? Was the attempt on Gaara a chance to lure me out?" Every move he's made in the past few weeks was subject in his mind to intense scrutiny.

"We're not sure yet. We will continue to investigate this. We can't have one of our own taking action against a Hokage, even a semi-retired one. Until then, your every move will be shadowed," Naruto sighed, irritated that it was potentially someone he knew who was after one of his adopted family members. "Also, with Hinata due any day now, you'll be remaining in the village for the next few weeks. It'll probably be the best thing in this situation."

Kakashi sighed and ran a hand through his hair in defeat. "Who will have the pleasure of keeping me alive?"

"Mostly, it will be Genma and Tenzo during the day, and then other ANBU operatives in the evenings," Shikamaru explained.

He partially relaxed when he heard that it was going to the two men he trusted most in life. "And when can I expect knights in shining ANBU armor to arrive?"

"You've been watched since you stepped back in Konoha last night," Shikamaru explained.

Without missing a beat, Kakashi nodded in acceptance. He didn't think it was worth making a fuss over things that not only were out of his control, but things that had already happened. He figured that it was only a matter of time before Naruto and the rest of the village would find out about his liaison with Sakura—however he could only fight one battle at a time, with the current sabotage taking precedence over all other items.

"Well then gentlemen, I believe I am overdue for a drink." With a sarcastic salute, he turned and left the room.

He kept his hands in his pockets and his head low, not wanting to make eye contact with was too much to contemplate. Between the high of Sakura, and the low of a conspiracy against him, his mind couldn't pick a topic to ruminate on. The only thing he could think to do was to go to the bar and drink. He realized that it wasn't the cleverest thing to do while someone was targeting him; however, with two trained and deadly assassins following him at all times, he could afford to play the risks.

Exiting the Hokage tower, he didn't stop as he made his way to the closest bar—one that he had visited frequently while he was the Rokudaime. He noticed the influx of people wandering the streets during their lunch-hour break. He couldn't help but look critically at every person he passed on the streets. Who should he be suspicious of? How many people of his beloved village were against him?

Hastily reaching the bar, he took a seat at a booth in the back corner, one that gave him a view of the whole place—including the exits, and all the patrons. Resting his elbows on the worn wood, his mind flipped back and forth once more between Sakura and sabotage, but was unable to clearly focus on either. The smell of alcohol, smoke and sweat was enough to ground him to this moment.

As he poured his second cup of sake into the small drinking saucer, he noticed two familiar faces enter the bar. They spotted him immediately and approached him without reserve.

"Hey there, buddy, how's it hanging?"

"Senpai."

The pair of brunets greeted him as they joined him in his booth. "Shouldn't you guys be in the shadows or something, watching and analyzing my every move?" Kakashi asked as he swirled the clear sake in his cup before shooting back the cheap liquor.

"It's much easier chaperoning you from right here," Genma laughed. He caught the attention of the waitress and signaled for two more bottles and two more cups.

"I'm sorry they pulled you guys into this," he said, uncharacteristically sullen.

"Now listen here, Kakashi: don't fall for this bullshit that you've done something to deserve to be targeted. Every village has these egotistical, maniacal assholes who believe their psychotic truth is THE truth," Genma ranted as he poured two more cups of sake for himself and his kohai.

Tenzo nodded his head enthusiastically.

"Thanks guys, but should you really be drinking?" Kakashi asked as he shot back another cup of sake.

"Oh yeah, don't worry about that. We've had some of those pills that medics invented that allows us to metabolize the alcohol immediately. So we can drink as much as you and not have it affect us."

"Don't worry, senpai. We won't let anything happen," Tenzo said reassuringly.

"Now that the mandatory crap is out of the way, want to tell us about your evening? You know, the smile on your face when you walked out of her place this morning was the look of a satisfied man, if you know what I mean," Genma nudged him and waggled his eyebrows.

Tenzo slumped at how quickly Genma could make a serious conversation inappropriate and awkward.

"Genma, is that really necessary?" Kakashi sighed.

"Yes, I believe it is pertinent information. Like how many times are we talking about here? We know that you went directly over to her place from the mission. And you spent the night there, so it must be serious, right?" Genma pressed.

"Don't you have your own woman to focus on?" he asked tiredly. Kakashi spared Tenzo a glance. He looked to be waiting for Kakashi to answer as well, but it seemed that he was too reserved to ask his own questions.

"Oh, you're curious about Shizune and I? What do you want to know? Our favourite position perhaps? Or which toys would make her scream your name loudest?" Genma asked as a big smile plastered across his face. He wasn't hesitating for a second. He figured if Kakashi was curious enough to ask, he had no problem telling him how his relationship was progressing.

Kakashi balked at Genma's openness—he didn't really know what to say. He wasn't a fan of complications, especially concerning relationships. It seemed that it was impossible to switch his mind off of this new complication in his life—it gave him such a weary feeling that he couldn't seem to shake.

Heaving a heavy sigh, he glanced at his friends. "Listen, I'm just trying to relax with a few drinks while someone out there is trying to hunt me. So can we just maybe not talk for a few minutes?" This time he shot back the sake and thwacked the cup harshly on the table.

Tenzo was caught off guard by Kakashi's sudden shortness, while Genma simply smiled at his agitated friend.

Sometimes Kakashi wondered if Genma knew him better than he knew himself. Feeling like this was coming out of the blue for him, and he struggled to control his feelings. He had honestly thought these types of revenge killings were a thing of the past. He had hoped that the conclusion of the Fourth War would have put an end to anyone with a personal vendetta against him.

"Okay, Kakashi. We're here for whatever you want," Genma smiled.

Kakashi lowered his head, allowing his hair to fall and cover his face. He could feel his face flush with a mixture of anger and frustration. He felt the growing resentfulness within himself for this new offence, even knowing it was out of his control. But there was nothing he could do at this moment. He would have to wait for this person to make their move, he could only hope that there wouldn't be any other casualties before he could get a handle on the situation.

A brief tightness in his chest reminded him he had someone now who could potentially get caught in the crossfire, so to speak.

"Guys, don't say anything about this to anyone, especially Sakura. I want to keep this under wraps until we know more. There's no point getting other people involved in this," he said as he looked into the sake that swirled in his cup. Seeing his own reflection scowling back at him only inflamed him more.

Ignoring the look on Kakashi's face, Genma nudged his shoulder. "You know she's going to be pissed off at you when she finds out—and you know she's going to find out. I can protect you from your enemies, but not from your own stupidity. And not telling Sakura is stupid."

"Can it, Genma. She doesn't need to know. This is my problem, and I will deal with it."

"Okay, but don't come crying to me when she breaks your legs," he chuckled as he drank another cup of sake.

* * *

Thank you reading! If you enjoyed it, please leave a kind comment. They really do bring a smile to my face and encourage me to write.


	12. Something Nosy

I want to thank each and every one of you who have read, reviewed, given kudos or sung praises about my story! It you guys that are keeping me going! I know I've been slow with updates (which will sadly continue) and even slower with the replies to all of the amazing reviews I've received! I still plan on replying to each one of you, answering the majority of the questions you have, except the ones that might be "on-the-nose" for this story. I can't give it away just yet ~_^

A special thanks goes out to **AlienWrites** and **BouncyIrwin** who helped me out so much with not only this chapter, but with me and keeping me sane! You guys mean the world to me! So lots of _**LOVE**_ going out to those two! Please go read their wonderful stories and support them too!

Enjoy

* * *

Sauntering through the hospital hallways, Kakashi searched for the private room where Hinata and Naruto were resting. While hospitals were his least favourite place to be, he didn't mind them so much for a happy occasion like this.

One of the Hokage's personal ANBU guards found Kakashi early this morning to let him know that Hinata had given birth only moments before to their second child. To think that Minato's baby was having his second child still threw him for a loop. It honestly made him feel old, even though he knew he wasn't really _that_ old. He couldn't be any more happy or prouder of Naruto for accomplishing everything he had.

Finally arriving at their private room, he saw that the door was slightly ajar. He could hear the quiet chatter of a few women and Naruto's voice humming and hawing in the background. Carefully shifting the items in his arms, he quietly knocked, hoping that the noise wouldn't disturb the baby.

He peeked his head in and saw Hinata resting on the bed, with Tsunade on one side, facing him, and Sakura on the other side with her back to him. It shouldn't surprise him to see Sakura here, but it still felt odd when his chest tightened at the sight of her.

"Is it okay for me to come in?" he called out, keeping his voice low.

All eyes turned to stare at him, except Sakura's whose frame minutely tensed. She seemed to hesitate before slowly twisting around to meet his eyes. There in the careful cradle of her arms lay a little bundle of blankets and somewhere in the middle of that was a baby.

"Please come in, Hatake-san," Hinata called out demurely.

He pushed the door wider with his shoulder since he had one hand wrapped around a fruit basket and the other clutching a bouquet of cheerful sunflowers. He walked towards a small table at the foot of the bed and placed both gifts there.

"These are for you, Hinata-chan. Congratulations! I'm very happy for you and Naruto," he said politely.

Naruto rose from his chair to join Kakashi and clapped him on the back. "Thanks! Did you see her? She's in Sakura's arms," the jubilant man exclaimed as he nudged Kakashi closer to Sakura.

It had been over two days since he'd seen her. The news he received from Naruto regarding a Konoha shinobi who was possibly pursuing him still weighed heavily on his mind. He was worried about dragging Sakura into the middle of this potential mess.

He could tell by the look on her face that she had felt his absence. In the time he spent away from her, he felt a growing void in his chest. At first he tried to deny his need for her—and by need he didn't mean just lust. He felt a compulsion to just be around her. Her presence had soothed his demons only a month ago, and now he was addicted to being in her company.

At Naruto's wave, Sakura came to stand between the two men. Naruto eagerly reached out and carefully peeled back the blanket that had risen to cover half of the baby's face.

"Isn't she perfect?" Naruto whispered in awe.

Kakashi smiled to himself, finding satisfaction in Naruto's pride as a father.

"She sure is. What's her name?" Kakashi murmured, taking in the sight of the dozing baby.

Naruto let out a dramatic sigh. "We haven't decided on one yet," he whispered sullenly.

Looking down at the bundle in Sakura's arms, Kakashi realised he was clueless about naming babies. He would have expected some sort of family name to be one of the top contenders. He knew that it was a little girl, but he couldn't even see the colour of her hair—although he doubted a girl's name would spring to mind if he could see more of her features. He puzzled over it, racking his brain for ideas.

"I... I think I have one," Hinata chimed quietly. Everyone turned to her expectantly. "The beautiful flowers that Kakashi-san brought reminded me of how much I love sunflowers... what if we named her Himawari?" she wondered, keeping her eyes fixed on Naruto.

Naruto's face immediately broke out in his typical broad grin. He walked over to his tired wife and cupped her face gently in his hands. "It's perfect," he said to her as he bent down and pecked her on the lips.

"Well then, now that you've chosen a name, I'll go fill out the proper paperwork and spread the news. I'll be back in a few hours to check on you Hinata. Make sure you get some sleep before then," Tsunade commanded with a joyous authority. She slipped out of the room, leaving the four adults and the newborn alone.

While Naruto and Hinata were too busy being completely enraptured by each other, Sakura smiled shyly up to Kakashi, unsure of what to say to him. He'd been absent from her bed and her life for the past few days, even though she knew he was in town. Several times she had debated whether or not she should chase him down to talk. However, she wasn't sure if he'd be okay with her just showing up on his doorstep unannounced—so she hadn't.

Sakura didn't understand what changed so rapidly between them, but she missed being near him. She missed his companionship just as much as she missed his body and the way he made her feel.

So while keeping her eyes locked on his, she nudged his shoulder with her own, careful not to jostle the baby in her arms. It made her happy to see the shape of his mask shift into a smile at her actions. Maybe it was all in her head, since he seemed to be acting as his usual self would be expected to around her in public.

Kakashi felt confident in resting a hand on her hip without anyone noticing, just to reassure her that things were okay between them. He knew he shouldn't have avoided her like he had, but he didn't know how to handle the situation with the Konoha ninja, and he really didn't want to place her in a potentially dangerous position.

He needed to protect her, if nothing else, and he wasn't sure if he could do both: protect her and have her. However, with the way that she was looking at him now, it would be hard to resist the pull he felt towards her. Perhaps the best he could do is watch over her from right beside her.

Kakashi studied her. There was certainly something different about seeing Sakura with a baby in her arms. There was a natural ease with the way she held the newborn against her. She seemed completely occupied as she gently rocked Himawari back and forth, soothing her into a deeper sleep. He wondered if she wanted any of her own one day.

"Do you want to hold her?" she asked, just barely above a whisper.

His eyes widened. "I ... don't think I should. I don't want to wake her..." he trailed off anxiously.

"Go on, Kakashi, hold Hima-chan. I'm sure you won't drop her." Before he could protest again, Naruto swept little Himawari from Sakura's arms and placed her in Kakashi's.

"Just make sure to support her head and you'll be fine," Sakura advised, a smile on her face.

Carefully, as if he was holding a live explosive tag, he shifted his arms to support the precious bundle.

"She's so light..." he said, awed. The experience of holding a newborn left him completely mystified.

Naruto laughed loudly, unafraid of waking his daughter. "She's just a few hours old Kakashi. She's got a lot of growing to do!"

"I just never realized how small they are when they're first born. I've never held a newborn before."

Sakura stared at Kakashi, taking in how delicate he was with Himawari. She couldn't help the way her chest tightened at the sight of him. Regardless of how he behaved towards Team 7 in her youth—reading porn in front of them and the like—she knew he would be an amazing father.

His eyes gentled the longer he held little Himawari. It was almost easy to guess what was going through his mind as she watched him. She knew that he felt a responsibility towards the little girl, one to protect and serve her. It was adorable seeing the emotions play out on what little she could see of his face—especially when Himawari started waking up.

Himawari's sweet face scrunched up as she opened her mouth and let out a startlingly loud wail.

"What'd I do? Why is she crying?" he asked, voice rising in panic. His eyes widened as the wail rose another octave. He looked to Sakura, desperation painted on his face.

Grinning, she placed a supportive hand on Kakashi's arm. "She's probably just got a dirty diaper. Here, let me give her back to Hinata. Then we should probably leave and let her feed," she cooed as she gently took the swaddled bundle from Kakashi's arms. "I think she's hungry again. She's all yours, Hinata. Once you finish feeding her, don't forget to rest. You've had a very long night."

"Thank you Sakura, I'll do that. And thank you Kakashi for the flowers and the inspiration for Hima's name," she said as she smiled tiredly towards them.

Sakura smiled at her childhood friends and subtly took Kakashi's arm to lead him out of the room. She shut the door behind them, leaving her and Kakashi out in the sparsely populated hallway.

"I am both ecstatic and worried for Hinata. Being a mom to a newborn is not easy; there will be a lot of sleepless nights to endure. But she's already a good mom to Boruto, so they know what to do. I'm sure they'll pull through."

"At least Naruto will be around for those first few weeks. I'll be acting as the Hokage until he comes back," he said tiredly.

"Does that mean I get to call you Hokage-sama again?" she cheekily asked.

"You know I've never been a fan of titles, so please don't call me that," he said with a put-upon sigh. Sakura blinked as he leaned down to whisper into her ear. "Unless you're going to use it in the bedroom," he murmured, baiting her with his deliciously deep voice.

"Kakashi!" she hissed at him, and smacked his side.

He laughed quietly enough so only the pair of them could hear.

"Want to join me for lunch? I found a new curry house that I think you'll like." They walked side by side down the hospital hallway, occasionally bumping shoulders.

Sakura blushed as she walked by some coworkers who gave her a prodding look. She was surprised with the casual way Kakashi asked her out on a lunch date. Unsure of what she was getting herself into, she hesitated.

It was one thing to sleep with Kakashi without anyone else knowing, but an entirely different thing to be dating him and to be seen with him doing things that couples usually did. She wasn't sure if she was ready to answer anyone's questions. However, at the same time, she missed him. What harm could come from lunch with a friend?

"Umm sure, I just have to drop some papers off and lock up."

"Okay, I'll meet you outside," he winked at her and turned down the hallway that led to the front entrance.

Sakura could feel the heat off her face as she walked away from him. She really felt like she was playing with something she didn't quite understand—which meant that one of them (or potentially both of them) were likely to get hurt.

Off in her own world, she didn't hear Ino calling after her.

"Earth to Sakura? Hello? You alright there Forehead?" Ino asked as she swept into view. "Why didn't you stop?"

With a little bit of quick thinking, she came up with an excuse that would appease her best friend. "Sorry Ino, I honestly didn't hear you. I was up all night with Hinata, so I'm pretty tired."

"Well go home and take a nap! I'll be by at 7 to pick you up. We're celebrating!"

Sakura stood wide-eyed, trying to grasp what Ino was saying. "Wait, what? Why?"

"We're going out to the bar to celebrate the birth of Hinata's daughter," she said slowly, over-enunciating every word.

"Umm, okay." Sakura couldn't think of a good way to get out of it, not that she really wanted to. She missed seeing her friends, so this would be a nice opportunity to see them again—as long as she could fit in a nap before.

"Good, now which way to Hinata's room?"

"Room 418, but she was just about to feed and then nap, so maybe come back in a few hours," Sakura suggested.

"Nonsense, I'll just pop by for a quick visit and head out. See you later, Forehead. Don't forget, seven o'clock!" Sometimes, there was no stopping Ino, and honestly, Sakura was too tired to try.

She quickly made her way to her office to finish the things she needed to do before heading out to meet Kakashi. Her shift from the night before was supposed to end around midnight, but when Hinata came into the hospital in labour, she knew that her friend would be more comfortable if she stuck around and helped her through the birth of her second child. Sakura had been there for the birth of Boruto and Hinata had shyly asked if Sakura would remain for this one as well.

So Sakura stayed with her friend all night despite her exhaustion.

Opening the main doors, she was momentarily blinded by the bright sunlight. Blinking a few times as her eyes adjusted to the light, she saw Kakashi lounging on the bench just outside the front door. Perched with one leg causally resting on his knee, and one arm across the backrest of the bench, he looked perfect.

Pausing in thought, Sakura's feet slowed to a stop. She couldn't help but stare at him for a moment. What was she doing falling for a man that would likely never feel the same way for her? Maybe she should put an end to this before she did something stupid, like tell him that she was falling in love with him. He probably wouldn't know what to do with a confession like that. She could imagine him smiling at her as he politely let her down. Which would totally ruin their friendship and—

"Sakura?"

She nearly squeaked, because she hadn't noticed Kakashi approach her as she was too caught up in her own thoughts.

He smiled down at her and reached out to rest a hand on her shoulder, "Are you okay?"

"Haha," she laughed nervously. "Of course! I'm just tired—and hungry."

When his smile warmed, all thoughts of breaking it off with him disintegrated. She wasn't sure what she would do, but she'd let it play out a little longer. After all, she was having fun with Kakashi as her casual sex partner. She didn't need to attach strings to everything—she just needed to have fun and relax, and as Kakashi showed her, he was very adept at helping her relax.

"So where is this new curry house that you found?" she said, smiling back at him.

"Not too far, really... but it's in the opposite direction of your place. If you're too tired, we can grab lunch some other time…?" he offered hesitantly.

"No, I'd like to go with you. I'll have time to catch a nap after lunch, before Ino comes to pick me up."

"Oh, what's this?"

"Ino has determined that a night out to celebrate is what I need, and there's no stopping her once her mind is made up. But it should be fun to see the whole gang."

Kakashi smiled good-naturedly at her as they walked shoulder to shoulder. "I'm sure Ino will make sure you have a good time."

With a snide laugh she corrected Kakashi, "Oh, if anything I'm sure she's going to make sure I get _drunk_. She insists it's my responsibility to get drunk enough for the whole group. Of course it usually depends on my work schedule, but thankfully, I have tomorrow off, so I can sleep in."

"I suppose it was a long night for you as well as Hinata and Naruto. You looked really comfortable with newborns—you seem to have a lot of experience with them," he commented, but then paused. It must sound weird for him to say that. Especially to Sakura. He hastened to explain himself, elaborating on his thoughts. "Is that something you want? More experience with newborns?" He paused and scratched at the back of his head. "You know, like some of your own. One day?" he clamped his mouth shut, deciding to just stop talking. He knew that he dug a hole with his words, and as long as he kept talking, it was only likely to get worse.

"Umm..." Sakura blanched at the personal question. "I guess. With the right partner, of course." She halted, trying to think of an answer for him. _Why does he care anyway?_ Then something dawned on her—her eyes widened. _Is it possible he's asking about his own kids? NO!_ She mentally exclaimed. There's no way he'd be asking that of her. But it was too late. Her mind was already off spinning wild ideas and fantasies about the unknown aspects of Kakashi's history.

_Did he want kids?_ How was she ever supposed to anticipate that _Kakashi_ might want kids?

She stumbled as her mind continued to race. _What if he had a kid already?! Did he already have an illegitimate child? Men get seduction missions too! And male birth-control isn't as widely used for shinobi. Konoha can keep some secrets surprisingly well when they want to._ She gripped at her hands tightly, pulling at the edge of her shirt. _There's no way I can get through lunch right now. I can't face him like this—not with these thoughts running through my head._

Stopping abruptly, Sakura plastered a sweet smile on her face and turned to Kakashi. "You know what? I think the night has finally caught up with me and I'm suddenly feeling really tired, do you mind if we get a rain check, Kakashi? Next time, I promise I won't work a 24-hour shift before we grab a friendly lunch." Laughing awkwardly, she reached out and patted him on the arm.

Without waiting for his response, she spun around and started heading in the direction of her home as quickly as she could without it seeming like she was running away.

Kakashi turned around and watched her leave. He sighed loudly as he continued to scratch the back of his head. That went downhill faster than he thought possible. He scoffed. He should have known better than to ask her about kids. Kakashi knew all too well about the type of pressure people often gave women to have kids, hell, he'd even felt that pressure from time to time, as the last of his family lineage. He worried that he hurt her feelings.

He'd have to find a way to apologize and make it up to her, he thought as he continued to walk towards the curry house.

* * *

The pounding on her door woke Sakura up. She knew she hadn't slept long enough to fully recover, but what little she got would have to be enough for her to enjoy a few hours out with her friends. She also desperately needed it to get her mind off her earlier blunder with Kakashi.

The pounding on her door started up once more. "Coming!" she yelled as she stretched her sleepy limbs.

She figured it must be Ino at her door. Throwing on a light housecoat, she hurried to the entryway, before Ino could decide to take her temper out on her property.

Twisting the lock open she opened the door, only to have Ino huff at her as she pushed her way inside.

"What took you so long, Forehead?"

"I was sleeping? You know I was up all night helping Hinata through her labour."

"And your point is?" Ino countered as she walked into her kitchen and within minutes poured them each a glass of wine.

Ino turned to stare at her. Sakura studied Ino in return. Ino had barely changed over the years, except for her ever increasing confidence in herself. Being a working shinobi mom suited her, and it made her happy, so that was all that really mattered to Sakura. Sai did a surprisingly good job at taking care of her best friend, for which Sakura was grateful.

"Something's different about you," Ino stated as she took a sip of wine.

Sakura tilted her head at her friend. "What do you mean?"

"I'm not sure yet, but I can tell that something's different about you."

Sakura did her best to give her best friend a convincing smile. "I don't know what you're talking about. Nothing's changed at all... I'm going to take a quick shower."

"Perfect! That'll give me time to raid your closet and see if you have anything worthwhile to wear tonight."

"Fine, but I have veto power," she called out as she walked out of the kitchen.

Sakura hated to admit it but she had a hard time keeping a straight face when Ino tried to question her about her personal life—which was nothing new. Sakura looked around her home as memories washed over her of all the times Kakashi had pushed her against the walls, or bent her over the table, and that one time when they fell to the floor, too consumed by their lust to make it to the bed.

Every surface held images of the pleasure they had given each other..

"Hurry up, Sakura, I don't want to be late!" Ino sang out.

As quickly as she could, she jumped in and out of the shower, washing and shaving everything required for a good night out on the town. Turning off the shower, Sakura dried off, slung a towel around her hair and her body as she joined Ino in her bedroom.

"Well, you don't have much to choose from, but I think I might have found something that could work for a fun night out."

Ino held up a low cut V-neck burgundy top that almost had no back to it. Ino's choice for bottoms was Sakura's favourite black skirt which reached her mid-thigh and hugged her curves nicely. Sakura did enjoy how that skirt made her look and feel.

"Ino, I can't wear that top. I thought this was just supposed to be a drink amongst friends, and not us 'hitting the town', so to speak."

"Any time out is a chance to get you laid, which is sorely overdue. So please just put it on with these and I'll help you with your makeup once you've changed," Ino smiled at her as she handed Sakura her clothing choices and a nice pair of shoes. She then promptly turned with a flourish and left Sakura's bedroom.

Looking at the clothes that her friend had picked out for her, she sighed and did as she was told. She figured, why not? Her goal wasn't to pick up any guys tonight, but she could at least dress up and feel sexy. Who knows; maybe after a few drinks she'd be able to forget her earlier fumble and visit Kakashi at his place tonight. She was sure that he would know how to appreciate her in these clothes and they could both forget what happened that afternoon.

After another twenty minutes, they were ready to leave her place and head to the bar. Sakura grabbed her purse and locked the door behind them as they left her home.

"So who's going to be there?" Sakura asked. She was eager to see everyone, since it had been a while since she'd gone to the bar for a happy reason, and even longer since she'd seen many of her close friends for a fun night out.

"Oh you know, the usual lot, minus Hinata and Naruto of course. I think someone invited Sasuke and whoever he is dating, but who cares if he shows up. They might have invited others too, but I think it's just the main group that's coming tonight."

Sakura hoped, half-heartedly, that Kakashi wouldn't make a surprise appearance. It would be too hard to act like she wasn't sleeping with him if he was going to be present. Especially if Ino's goal was to get Sakura drunk and then try to hook her up with some random bar patron. Of course she wasn't going to hook up with anyone this evening, but she wasn't opposed to some harmless flirting with some good looking guy.

They made their way to the bar, just a few blocks away from where Ino lived. It seemed most of their friends had already arrived and had taken over a large portion of the bar. Naturally, close friends of the Nanadaime were afforded such privileges.

Smiling as they walked towards their group, Sakura greeted them all. Just as the occupants were shifting in their seats to make room for Ino and Sakura to join them, she heard Genma's distinctive voice call out a greeting to them.

Genma and Shizune came to stand beside Sakura, while Ino had already taken a seat beside Sai.

"Look who we found on our way over," Genma called out as he pointed a thumb over his shoulder at whomever he was talking about. Sakura thought it could have been one of their other friends, until Kakashi's musk invaded her senses.

Without looking at her, he came to a stop beside her, invading her personal space with his scent that she couldn't help but breathe in deeply. Sakura could tell that he had showered earlier because she recognized the smell of his body wash, but there was another lingering spice around him. Kakashi's natural musk reminded her of all of the times they had gotten tangled up in each other. It sent a bolt of lust that lingered in her core.

When Kakashi had entered the pub he casually followed behind his friends. He knew that Sakura had planned on spending the evening out with her friends, and he had been honestly curious about what she was like around the people she grew up with. However, he hadn't meant to crash the party like he was doing. Trailing several steps behind his friends, his eyes kept darting all over the place. He knew that Tenzo was lurking in the shadows while Genma had already taken another pill that would make alcohol useless on him this evening.

But when he saw Sakura standing beside the booth, her bare back on display, he stopped in his tracks. Her hair trailed down her back in soft waves, covering where the revealing shirt gaped open. The outfit she wore hugged her body in such a way that he desperately wanted to grab her and peel it off her. Seeing the way that skirt accentuated her perfect ass and legs, made something dark and desirous stir inside him. Never had the skill of masking his lust been put to better use than right then.

For now he had to wait to act on it until he was sure no one could see, and until that moment, he couldn't reveal how much he wanted her. He didn't want to risk anyone seeing just how badly he needed to whisk her away, to hear her moan, and to taste her smooth skin and coat his tongue with her sweet release.

"Yo," he said as he raised a hand in greeting to their friends. They all looked towards him and greeted him. Little did they know—or see—how his other hand reached behind Sakura, cupping her ass and squeezing it tightly. He had a hard time resisting doing anything else to her.

Trying not to move or squeak, Sakura did her best to cover her reaction and not give away that his hand rested on her backside. Sakura took a step forward, away from Kakashi, in an attempt to remove the temptation of retaliation. She didn't want anyone else to see what he had done.

Moving to the far side of the table, she sat beside Shizune but then to her surprise, Kakashi moved to sit beside her. There was plenty of space left around the table, but perhaps she shouldn't be surprised that he would take the spot closest to the door.

She wondered how much Shizune and Genma had to work to convince Kakashi to come along with them.

As soon as they got settled, a server arrived with more bottles of sake, and menus for all of the newcomers. Sakura was just raising a glass to her mouth when Tenten addressed her.

"So? How is Hinata? And the baby?"

"Everyone is healthy! They named her Himawari," she said, leaving out the part where it was because of Kakashi's flowers that the couple had figured out a name for their daughter.

"That's magnificent to hear! Then let's all raise a glass to Hinata, Naruto, Boruto and little Himawari," called out an energetic Lee. "May Naruto's loins continue to produce healthy children!" He raised his glass in a toast while everyone else groaned. Someone quickly took the alcoholic beverage from Lee's hands and replaced it with a cup of water. Then everyone else joined him cheering an enthusiastic 'kanpai' as they raised their glasses and shot back their respective drinks. Once again, Kakashi joined in the rowdy toast—even if he didn't shout out a 'kanpai' like everyone else—then he smiled, pulled out Tactics and relaxed for a quiet evening of reading and drinking while pretending to ignore everyone.

Sakura stared at Kakashi from the corner of her eye. She knew that he was a little different from the rest of her friends, but she liked the way he was. If he changed, then he wouldn't be Kakashi—even if he decided to be anti-social at social events. As she shot back another cup of sake, she thought back to their earlier lunch-time-freakout, and decided that she definitely overreacted. There was just no way that a conversation about children was a good idea to have at their stage of whatever it was they were doing.

While Ino kept the waitresses busy with constant orders of more sake and food, Sakura took advantage of the night to catch up with many of her friends whom she didn't get to see as often as she'd like. Most of them were kept busy with responsibilities to their families or work. Being a full-time shinobi filled their day enough as it was.

About an hour in, and several drinks and shots later, Sakura was starting to feel tipsy and daring. Slyly, she slipped her hand onto Kakashi's thigh and waited for his reaction. At first, she felt the muscles tense under her hand, but he quickly relaxed under her grip, and even shifted a little to open his legs and press up against her palm. Doing her best to split her attention between her two tasks, she kept an ear out as her friends chattered, and continued to rest her hand on Kakashi's leg, drawing little circles with the tip of her finger. She knew that it was affecting him, especially when she'd let her hand dip towards his inner thigh. She could have sworn that she heard his breath catch a time or two.

When his hand covered hers on his thigh, it was her turn for her breath to catch. Threading his fingers with hers, he directed her hand up his inner leg until she was only a hair's breadth away from feeling him up in this public place.

His hand left hers, as it slipped above the table to take a drink from his sake. Continuing to tease him, she swirled her finger along his leg until she slowly edged it just beside his hardening member. When his cup paused just before it reached his masked lips, she knew that she had him right where she wanted him: on edge and aroused. She knew that there would be payback, but she longed for it.

Unless he stopped her, she would continue to draw circles on his leg and follow the conversations going around the table.

She eagerly listened to everyone fill her in on the latest news for each of them. Absolutely enthralled, she clung to every word. Sakura couldn't have asked for a better night out.

At least until Sai opened his mouth.

"Sakura, I would like to comment on your constant smile and light flush that you've had since joining us. I assume it's because you're getting regular sexual intercourse now?" Sai asked nonchalantly to fill the brief lull in the conversation.

All eyes turned to her, except Shizune, Genma and Kakashi who all knew the truth.

Sakura's head spun towards Sai immediately, eyes wide with shock at the blunt assumption. She couldn't help but send him a furious death glare. "Sai..." she growled.

"That's it!" Ino exclaimed. "I knew something was different! You know how perceptive Sai has always been with these kinds of things. He's right, isn't he, Forehead?" Sakura keenly noticed how much Ino's laugh sounded like a hyena's at that moment.

Trying to derail this train of questioning, she stumbled for something to say. "What?!" Sakura clamored. Desperately she tried to think of excuses and ways to deny the accusation.

With big puppy dog eyes, Lee turned towards Sakura, trying to hold the tears back. "Is it true, Sakura-san? Have you taken a man to your bed?" She could have sworn she saw his lip quiver as he spoke.

Out of the corner of her eye, Sakura saw Kakashi flip a page in his porn while ignoring the conversation, while Genma and Shizune were doing a good job of keeping their snickers and grins to themselves—for the most part.

Even after digging her nails into Kakashi's leg, it seemed that she was on her own in this. At least, she thought she was alone, until she saw Kakashi shift his book to the side and turn his lazy gaze towards her. They hadn't discussed if, when or how they'd tell their friends, but it seemed that he was about to step up.

"You know, Sakura-chan, you don't have to be shy around your friends, we won't judge you for whomever you're sleeping with," he added in cheerfully.

Mortified by his comment, her nail dug even deeper into his muscular thigh beneath the table. Kakashi squinted his eyes which appeared to everyone else as a grin, while to her, she knew that he was wincing because of her death grip on him.

"Come on, Forehead. Even your old sensei is curious!" Ino chimed in. "I'm sure you can part with a few juicy details."

Once more, Sakura saw Kakashi's eyes crease in a grin, but she also noticed the annoyed, subtle twitch in his brow—probably at being called old. If only Ino knew how young and spry Kakashi truly was—in all aspects of looks and acts.

Even though he had jumped in on teasing her, she couldn't help but feel bad for him for being called old. Sakura contemplated something she could say to appease the group and mollify who was visiting her bed.

"Fine. Yes, I'm 'seeing' someone," she said through clenched teeth.

There were a few cat calls at her announcement. She saw how people like Genma and Ino smiled leeringly at her, while others like Shikamaru and even Kakashi, ignored her.

"And?" Ino prompted. "Is he hot? Young? Old? Shinobi? Civilian? From Konoha? Come on! Give us the details!" she demanded in quick procession. Ino waved her hands, indicating that Sakura's cup should be continuously filled with sake.

Sakura sipped carefully, sure that if she drank too fast, there was a good possibility that she'd get even more loose-lipped and expose more than she really wanted to share. Ino could be such a gossip, and Sakura didn't want her business being passed around Konoha as the latest scandal.

She was also sure that Kakashi wouldn't appreciate it either.

But then again, Kakashi had egged her on, so maybe payback could be a bitch this time and work to Sakura's favour.

Trying to balance out the conversation between keeping her greedy and nosy friends happy and not giving away too much, she paused in thought. "Umm..." she said, trying to drag out the pause. Pretty much everyone was looking at her expectantly, waiting for her to divulge some juicy details about her secret lover. "Well it's a guy and... he's from Konoha," she stated as she tapped her chin in thought.

"Annnd?" Ino pressed, eagerly.

"Umm... I guess he mostly does ANBU missions these days," Sakura added. All the women let out an 'ahh' with knowing smiles and sat back in their chairs.

"Wait, what's with the ' _ahh_ '?" Kiba demanded as he cocked his head.

"You wouldn't understand," Tenten sighed wistfully, while the rest of the women nodded in agreement.

"What? Why not?" he barked in complaint.

Ino had a smug look on her face as she leaned towards him. "Men in ANBU uniforms are hot as fuck. Not to mention that ANBU are thoroughly capable in all aspects of life," Ino revealed with a smirk.

Temari then turned her attention back towards Sakura, and spoke up. "So you caught yourself a hottie."

Sakura could only laugh awkwardly, wanting this inquisition to end. It would be less mortifying if the man she was sleeping with wasn't sitting right beside her.

Once more, Ino picked up the slack in the inquiry. "How old is he? Older than you? Or younger? Are you a cougar? Did you take some young man's virginity?"

Sakura's jaw nearly hit the table as she stared at Ino. Her fingers quickly latched onto Kakashi's leg in warning when he choked on his drink.

"Ino!" Sakura screeched at her long time friend.

"You okay there Kakashi?" Genma teased as he laughed at the rambunctious discussion between the younger shinobi. "Don't you have an opinion about Sakura's new love affair?" Genma asked as he grinned at the animated expressions the pair displayed.

"I think Sakura is fully capable of taking care of herself. She's a big girl and can sleep with whoever she wants," he replied with false calm as he drank another cup of sake and shifted his attention back to his porn.

"Ino, enough! You're getting nothing else from me!" Sakura couldn't believe her friends. She knew that they meant well, but really, was this type of interrogation necessary? If Ino had questions, she could ask her in private. And IF Sakura was in a good mood, she'd answer SOME of Ino's prying questions, but that girl has no discretion!

Sakura just needed a fun night out with her friends, and sadly the best way to do that was to ignore her best friend and try to get the attention off her. "You know what's worth discussing Ino? You. When can we expect a second child from you and Sai?"

It was Ino's turn to have her tongue tied, and so while she was fumbling for an answer, Sai stepped in. "That's kind of you to ask, Sakura. We don't anticipate having a second anytime soon unless Ino's birth control fails. It is a possibility however, since we perform intercourse usually every other day. Sometimes more," Sai answered seriously, while he thought about the question.

For all of his odd tendencies, Sakura still loved Sai as a brother and was proud of how far he had come from when she first met him. He would always be a little odd but endearing in his own way. As for the rest of her friends, they had resumed their little chats once the spotlight was off her and her secret love life.

Finally able to enjoy herself once more, she relaxed, glad she was no longer the center of attention. Sighing to herself, Sakura sunk back into the pleasant atmosphere of being out with her friends as she listened to their stories and updates about what was new in their lives. She even felt comfortable enough to continue shifting her hand up and down Kakashi's thigh. It amazed her how he hid such a muscular body beneath his everyday outfit. She hoped that they would meet up later so that she could see all that gloriously fit body, minus said outfit. She loved admiring his physique and the way he moved when she took control. It was such a thrill to have him contorted in pleasure whenever she had her way with him.

Tucking her hair behind her ear and taking a deep breath, Sakura did her best to drag her mind to the conversations occurring in front of her. The warmth of the packed room and the alcohol must be getting to her.

It felt like the heat was consuming her from inside and out. She still carefully listened to the conversations, but she couldn't help but spread her legs a little wider. Keeping her thighs tightly together was making her hotter than she thought possible. She debated leaving the table to get a brief breath of fresh air, but she didn't want to draw anymore attention to herself.

When a familiar gloved hand settled on her thigh, just on the edge of her skirt, she held her breath. The weight of his palm and the lack of air left her head swimming. Remembering herself, she gulped down some much needed air.

She did her best to keep a steady smile on her face while his finger traced slow but wild patterns on her bare skin. Her breath shuddered as he continued to play with her, so in hopes of covering her reaction, she gulped down another cup of sake. The heat between them was going to devour her if she wasn't careful. A fever always started between her legs whenever he was around her.

A rough finger pad slowly edged it's way closer and closer to the epitome of her heat. Moving slowly to not draw any attention to them, she adjusted her hand to cover his, to stop him. However when a short nail reached out and brushed her nether lips, she gasped and wheezed.

Thankfully, Lee had said something funny that exact moment which got the group howling with laughter and effectively covered the sound she made. Her hand pulled on Kakashi's and regrettably removed it from her body.

Out of the corner of her eye she saw him raise his hand to his masked mouth and trace his lips with the finger she knew he'd just touched her with.

Sighing, she shook her head subtly at him. She would get him back for teasing her, but until then, it was going to be a long night.

* * *

Smiling cheerfully, Sakura waved goodbye to her friends and began to walk home. Kakashi (and strangely Genma, but not Shizune) had left almost an hour ago. She figured it would look weird if she left at the same time as Kakashi, and even worse if they went in the same direction together.

The last thing she wanted was a repeat of this evening's probing interrogation. She enjoyed sharing her life with her friends, but being put on the spot like that and then having everyone stare at her was more than she was comfortable with.

The wind had picked up since earlier, swirling her hair around her face, obscuring her view as she walked down the empty streets of Konoha. The late hour brought a different kind of darkness to the streets and with the moon being shrouded by thick clouds, Sakura stumbled along the poorly lit road. Between the wind and the eerie feeling of the night, she felt shivers racing down her back.

Of course it didn't help that she was fairly tipsy after all of the drinks that Ino and her other friends had pushed on her. Towards the end of the evening, they did try once more to pump information out of Sakura about the man she was sleeping with, but Sakura had remained tight lipped about it. Even after Kakashi had left, she hadn't wanted to share him with anyone else—yet. There was something about keeping him all to herself that plastered a big smile on her face. She couldn't help but flush once more as a very different type of shiver raced down her back.

Continuing to walk down the sidewalks on her street, she detected a constant presence that seemed to be following her since leaving the pub. It would be stupid for it to be anyone else other than Kakashi. And after all of the teasing that they had done at the pub, she really wasn't that surprised that he'd follow her home. If anything, she was happy that he was eager to join her in bed once more.

Quickening her pace, she rushed to her building and hurried up the stairs, eagerly looking forward to getting back at Kakashi for provoking her all night. Perhaps tonight would be the night when she took control. She was fairly sure that Kakashi was game for anything that she wanted. Which was another amazing thing about him; he was a very considerate and open lover.

Her face broke out in a big smile as she slipped the key into the lock and opened her apartment door. She figured he'd slip into her apartment soon after her.

Taking off her heels and bringing them to her bedroom to put them away, she jumped a little when she saw Kakashi already shirtless and laying on her bed. He looked absolutely perfect reclining on her bed like that. She knew that he was looking forward to a pleasureful evening—as was she.

Still feeling a little annoyed with his earlier teasing, she began plotting her payback.

"Well that was fast. I didn't expect you to make yourself comfortable so quickly," she teased him. She faced him fully and rested a delicate hand on her hip as she sent him a mock glare. "You were such a brat earlier, egging the group on. What were you thinking? Did you want them to find out that we're sleeping together?"

A grin spread across his bare face. "Don't worry so much. People often ignore what's right in front of them," he commented as he shifted so that he was leaning forward slightly. He liked watching her move in her own home. She was completely comfortable here in her domain—which he considered to be one of the sexiest things about her. Well that, and her outfit. He enjoyed how both her shirt and skirt fit her body like a second skin and accentuated all of his favourite parts.

Still glaring, she waved an accusing finger at him. "Yes, maybe common people. But not highly trained shinobi like us." She turned around and rummaged through her dresser. "You know, I think I want a little retribution for earlier," she said over her shoulder.

She had obviously found what she was looking for, because she spun around with a triumphant grin on her face. She crawled atop his resting body, moving with a grace that only shinobi of her calibre possessed. Her head bowed and she captured his lips in a demanding kiss while subtly moving his hands to rest above his head.

He felt something papery stick to his wrists where they were casually resting above his head.

"There, now you're mine to do with." She spread her knees on either side of him and sat back on his torso. "Safe word is peaches. Do you have any limits this evening?" she asked as she traced his nipple with one of her fingers, teasing and tormenting it. He couldn't react the way he wanted to since she had pinned his arms to the bed with a ward.

With her free hand, Sakura pulled down her shirt and exposed her bare breasts to his hungry stare. Immediately her nipples tightened in the cool air. She began to grind and undulate her lace-covered core against his bare chest while playing with her own nipple in the same way that she stroked with his.

"I'm not in the mood for being pegged tonight, but everything else is fine by me," he growled as he tried to shift under her teasing fingers.

She hummed appreciatively, loving how his body reacted to her. "I can work with that. And maybe one day, you'll let me peg you if you have another hot body to sink into and fuck at the same time. Would that satisfy you?" she hummed as she lifted her skirt and moved to sit on his face.

"I think I would thoroughly enjoy that," he murmured as he pressed his mouth forward and into her core. He ached to taste her sweet, musky flavour that he'd been thinking of all evening.

"Good boy," she sighed as his lips found her clit and wrapped around it. She had never taken total control of their sexual encounters before, but she would ensure that they both thoroughly enjoyed it tonight.

* * *

Several hours later, Sakura dozed lightly on his sweaty chest. Slowly, Kakashi ran his hand up and down her back, enjoying the way she shivered as his fingers brushed the small of her back, teasing along the rise of her round ass.

"Mmm... that feels good," she whispered as she nuzzled his neck. "I'm so glad you followed me home tonight," she sighed happily, kissing the skin within her reach and then slowly falling back asleep.

Kakashi laughed softly, keeping her awake. "What are you talking about? I came straight here when I left the pub. I got comfortable and waited very patiently for you to come home," he explained to Sakura who was trying to cling onto the pleasant cloud of sleep.

She hummed and yawned at the same time. "Ino must've sent Sai to follow me home then. You know, to see if I went to my _lover's_ home. He'll have to try harder next time. It was way too easy to detect a chakra signature following me," she scoffed, coming awake enough to piece things together.

However, Kakashi couldn't help the way he briefly froze when Sakura mentioned that someone had followed her home. _Could it be the same pursuer that's after me? Should I mention it to her? I can't allow her to get caught up in my mess. She deserves better—she deserves to be safe in her own home._

But if they saw him and her together, maybe it was too late to push her out. He couldn't risk leaving her defenseless. Thankfully, now that he was temporary Hokage, he could assign her additional protection without anyone else being the wiser. He'd just have to make sure that he found out who was after him before he gave the hat back to Naruto. He wasn't sure how Naruto would take his minor abuse of power if he found out that Kakashi was spending so much extra time, attention and resources taking care of Sakura.

Furthermore, he didn't think Naruto would be okay with them sleeping together—he didn't know who would accept them in any semblance of a relationship as they were former teacher and student. Their relationship could confuse and complicate their ties with their friends. However it was too late. It was possible that the culprit already knew, and he couldn't leave Sakura defenseless.

He was never one to leave his partner exposed and vulnerable.

* * *

Thank you again for reading, (hopefully) enjoying and reviewing! Your reviews truly make my day!


	13. Something Smoldering

**Hello There!**

I'm back! And I bring good things! This chapter is completely smut, _**SO PLEASE, NO UNDERAGE READERS!**_ This is explicit smut, and I don't want any complaints! 

I want to thank the most amazing beta in the world, Bouncy-Irwin! She is wonderful and helped me out so much with this chapter!! You should go read her stuff because it's all AMAZING too!

Thank you so much to all of you who have read, enjoyed and commented on the other chapters! Every review helps me out so much, you have no idea! Although for this chapter, please be kind. I am nervous about this one.

Thank you and Enjoy!

* * *

It was Kakashi's third day of covering for Naruto as temporary Hokage, and he was weary of it already. He was truly happy for Naruto and Hinata and their new baby girl, but he was not a fan of the bureaucracies that came with the job. There was a good reason he gave up the position in the first place.

He hadn't seen Sakura since the memorable night of the bar, and he was already missing her. In his first morning back in his temporary position, he immediately assigned three of his best ANBU to take turns watching her. Thankfully they didn't need to ask questions to do their job.

Some might see this as an abuse of power, but it was his duty to protect each and every one of the citizens of Konoha, regardless of who they were sleeping with. He missed her during all of this and he wished it could be him watching over her during the evenings, but he often found himself working well into the late hours of the night.

It didn't help that Konoha was in the middle of an early summer heatwave. Not to mention that he had to wear the Hokage robes at all times and there was no fresh air coming in, so it was constantly sweltering in the office.

Diplomats, daimyos, politics and angry citizens filled his days from dawn to dusk to dawn again. Right now he was debriefing an eight-man team returned from an A-ranked mission; the mission was a complete success—no injuries sustained and the objective achieved. At least that was an easy thing for Kakashi to handle.

The end of the day was drawing closer but his door never stopped opening and closing, much to his dismay.

Once more the door opened, but this time Shikamaru walked in with a stack of papers in his arms. Kakashi thought he saw someone else come in behind the young man, but with the other eight people crowding his temporary office he couldn't see who it was.

The eight-manned team concluded their debriefing, bowed politely and began to shuffle out. Kakashi bent his head to write down some notes, and as the door opened and closed for the last time, a fragrant breeze pushed through into his office and reached him.

Then he could smell it. Pure and undiluted arousal— _Sakura's_ arousal. It was so strong it left him heady. Kakashi snapped his head up towards the remaining two people in his office.

Seeing that he had his attention, Shikamaru launched into discussing a pile of reports and documents that had to be verified. Kakashi just nodded his head every once in a while, making it seem like he was paying attention. In reality, he couldn't take his eyes off Sakura.

She stood politely at the back of the Hokage's office, dressed in a pretty, floral summer dress with a red sash. It was obvious to Kakashi that she wasn't wearing any form of underwear by the look of her nipples straining through the fabric of her dress and by the strength of her scent, unobstructed by cloth.

Shikamaru dropped the pile of documents onto his desk, still explaining everything that Kakashi had to do—but Kakashi still wasn't listening. He was enthralled by Sakura. She appeared to be trying to stand still, but it seemed she couldn't help but rub her thighs together every few seconds.

Kakashi finally stood up and addressed Shikamaru as he moved around the desk. "Thank you for the documents and information. I'll be sure to take care of it all. But I'm afraid I forgot the important meeting I had scheduled with Sakura now," Kakashi explained as he ushered Shikamaru out the door with only a little protest from the young man.

Once he was out, Kakashi immediately closed and locked the door behind him, and sprung on Sakura.

He instantly pinned her against the wall, lowered his mask, and pressed his lips greedily against hers. His Hokage's hat was knocked slightly askew while his robes rustled against them both at his jerky movements. The scent of her demanded him to dominate her, to cover her scent with his, and he was all too happy to oblige.

He moved between kissing her mouth to her neck and to the shell of her ear and then finally back to her mouth.

"You're rather worked up," Kakashi growled.

Sakura moaned as his mouth claimed hers again. "I woke up like this. I haven't been able to stop all day," she panted out, grabbing at his clothes to hold him against her.

Kakashi growled again and gripped her ass as he lifted her to rest on his knee. At once, Sakura cried out and Kakashi could feel something vibrating between her legs. It only took him half a second to figure it out.

His fingers dug in Sakura's ass and pulled her hard against him as he ground them together.

"Naughty Sakura..." Kakashi tisked. "You seem to be full already. Are you sure you need my help?"

"Ahhh...Kakashi..." she groaned. "Please..."

Kakashi went back to earnestly kissing her, while grinding her hips against his body. Her hands skirted all over him, anywhere within her reach. He could tell that she was desperate for his touch. It wasn't long before Sakura stilled and threw her head back and moaned loudly.

"Already?" Kakashi grunted out. She must have been very riled up to be having an orgasm so soon.

She just moaned in answer and with every noise she made Kakashi grew harder.

"Let's get you settled here," Kakashi said as he lavished her jaw and neck with kisses, helping her come down from her orgasm.

He withdrew the leg pressed precariously between her thighs, and pinned her against the wall with his body.

He took his time carefully undoing her red sash, and slowly pulled it free from her dress. He tucked it into his back pocket, deciding that he was going to use it again soon. The front of her dress was lined with tiny buttons, and he relished popping open every last one of them. Kakashi kept his eyes trained on Sakura, drinking in the sight of her as she was still reeling from the aftershocks of her orgasm rocking through her body.

Button after button he revealed Sakura to his hungry eyes. Her nipples were redder than usual, which told him that she'd been playing with them earlier. He gave each one a quick kiss, noting how hot her skin was against his lips.

He slipped her dress off her silky shoulders and let it pool on the ground in a puddle. There were no other barriers on Sakura, but Kakashi was still fully clothed. He could see the tantalizing drip of her honey just on the inside of her thigh, and Kakashi couldn't help himself. He knelt down in front of her and pushed his face between her legs.

He held her still with his hands kneading her ass as his tongue slipped out and lapped up the glistening trail slowly running down her thigh. The toy that was still buzzing inside her got his attention. One part was obviously inside her, while another part was curved up towards her clit, which was exactly where he wanted to be.

He glanced up at Sakura, noting that she was watching him reverently, her face flushed a bright red. He snuck one hand towards her toy and easily manipulated it—in and out, slowly torturing her. Her eyes closed in pleasure as she neared another orgasm.

Kakashi thrust the toy a little faster, wanting to bring her to her peak yet again. He kept his mouth busy by kissing her thighs, moving up and across her lower stomach and then down to the other thigh.

Just as her body began to shudder and let go, he dragged the toy from her and latched his mouth onto her clit. He lapped carefully at her tender core, temporarily denying her release. Sakura whined at the change in stimulation and the short-lived orgasm.

"My god, Sakura, you're delicious," Kakashi groaned, licking upwards as his mouth was filled with her previous releases. His cheeks were covered in her essence as he pushed his face further between her legs.

Sakura had placed her hands on his shoulders to steady herself, but now her hands were clutching the fabric over his strong muscles.

"What made you like this?" Kakashi asked as he slowly lapped at her over-stimulated core.

"I just woke up like this," she said breathlessly. "It happens every once in a while, I just can't get enough for a few days."

"Days?" he asked incredulously.

Sakura moaned in agreement.

Kakashi maneuvered one hand from her ass to slide between her legs and gently brush against her lips. Sakura's reaction was exactly what he wanted: she spread her legs a little further apart, moaning and gripping harder at his clothes.

She tried to find his skin, but between the Hokage's robes and his uniform, she couldn't gain access to his body.

Kakashi understood her silent plea and briefly removed his hands from her body to push aside his white robes. He tossed his discarded layers towards his desk, not caring if they knocked anything over.

He looked at the aroused woman in front of him, and honestly couldn't remember ever feeling more turned on than he did right then. The way that she was looking at him, like she wanted to devour him—he knew she craved him the way he craved her. She reached out for his belt, and began to undo the ties that were keeping him from her. It only took a second before she had his cock out to play with.

She immediately started pumping his already engorged member, making sure that he was hard and ready as could be to fill her deeply and fully.

Kakashi was still working on his vest and shirts, pulling them off as quickly as he could. The moment his chest was bare, she leaned into him, pressing urgent kisses to wherever she could reach while her hands continued to stroke him. He pressed into her, resting both hands against the wall astride her head.

He let her play with him for a time, while his mind was still catching up to the rest of his body that was already more than ready. Closing his eyes, he relished the feeling of her touching him. Too soon did her mouth stop pressing heated kisses to his neck and chest, and he felt her shift.

A wet heat enveloped his cock, and he looked down to see the vision of her on her knees, her hands clutching his thighs for support as she moved her head back and forth along his cock. It seemed that she was in a hurry for him to reach the point where she was.

"Sakura, you've got to slow down to make this last," he groaned, and watched her continue to suck him off. Her movements stuttered and slowed as she reached over to her dress puddled on the ground, and pulled something from the pocket. She stretched her hand and the item that remained hidden in her grasp and placed it flat against his taut abdomen.

He moved his hand to meet hers and take whatever she was offering. A solid hard rubber ring rested in his grasp.

Sakura had just given him a cockring.

Her head was still bobbing over his erection. "I see you've been busy shopping," he moaned, earning a hum in agreement. The vibrations at the back of her throat sent a throb down to his balls. She still wasn't slowing down an inch.

But she was going to have to stop if she wanted him in her.

He threaded his hand into her hair, coaxing her to a stop. She didn't immediately halt, using her tongue to lick the tip, and suckle it back into her mouth. Kakashi shuddered and groaned in pleasure. It was time for her to relinquish control to him before he lost his grip on himself.

"Sakura, come here," he said as he pulled her up to his chest. "Get up."

He looked her square in the eye, the hand still interlaced in her hair messaging the back of her head. "What do you want?" he demanded as if in an interrogation.

She rubbed her hands up his chest, barely focusing on what he was saying. "You."

"In what ways do you want me?" he tugged at her hair, still trying to get her to focus on his questions, instead of her lust.

"In any way. In every way possible." She was a moaning mess, unable to stop herself from greedily pressing her hips against his cock that jutted out from his pants. "Page 47," she said breathlessly. He couldn't help but grin at her.

"Okay, Sakura. I'll take care of you. Let me take control."

She kissed his chin, still rubbing herself against him. "Please, Kakashi," she whispered urgently.

He reached behind him and took her red sash out of his back pocket.

"Hands," he commanded as he brought her wrist in front of her and he used the sash to secure them tightly together.

She saw him smirk as his hands moved to her hips and his mouth moved to claim hers for a quick heated kiss.

A second later and before she had time to be startled, he grabbed her ass, hoisted her up, and with a quick expert twist, he plunged his hardened length fully into her.

Sakura cried out as he fully seated himself within her. He moved her bound hands and raised them above her head, and pressed her against the wall, pinning her with his body. It wasn't long before he started moving in slow, hard thrusts, driving her crazy.

With her hands bound, she was at his mercy for the pace he set. She wanted him to move faster and bring them both their peak quickly, but she had no leverage to move things along.

He continued to pump in and out of her at his own pace, holding her in place and not allowing her to move on her own. He could feel his own release building—which he knew would be the first of many peaks to be reached this afternoon. His plan for her formed after she placed the cockring against his body and asked to reenact a certain scene from his beloved books.

With a bit of gentle persuasion, he would make it a very memorable afternoon for the both of them.

He allowed her arms to fall and rest around his neck, placing both of his hands on her hips to angle them so that he was brushing along her g-spot.

Her sighs of encouragement wound him up, made him drive up faster into her until he was sure that his tight grip on her hips would leave bruises. But she was moaning so loudly that he knew that she wouldn't mind any marks that might appear. A few hard thrusts later, she cried out suddenly, her body going rigid as she found release again.

With her body milking him so sensually, his own orgasm followed quickly. He did his best to temper it, since they were far from being finished.

Not allowing his own body to fully crest the wave of endorphins, he pulled out of her with a deep grunt.

"Fuck, Sakura," he panted, gripping the base of his cock with one hand and pinning her against the wall with his free arm. He let his head fall to her shoulder, resting it there for a minute.

He felt his length starting to soften. It was time to put his plan into action. He reached up to slip her still bound arms up and over his head and let her slowly come to rest on her own feet.

He took the cockring from where he had kept around one of his fingers and placed it in her hand. "Get on your knees, place this on me and then clean me up."

His voice was so deep and guttural, ordering her to her knees, and it sent another set of violent but pleasurable waves through her body.

When she didn't respond immediately, he put his hands on her shoulders and gently pushed her to her knees in front of him. Her bound hands made it awkward for her at first, but she quickly found her balance. She reached out to his semi-flaccid length and gave a few curious licks of the tip, knowing that she was tasting a mix of both of them.

Kakashi threaded one hand through her hair while resting the other against the wall for balance. He drew her head back before she could continue cleaning him up so thoroughly.

"Put the cockring on while I'm soft," he said huskily, watching her every move. He moved to rid himself of his pants with hasty movements. They sunk to his feet and he kicked his pants and sandals off to the side.

Sakura knew that the cockring should be lubed before it was slipped on, but since the lube she brought was in her purse, and she had tossed that aside somewhere, she did the only thing that she could think of—she placed it between her own legs and allowed her own juices to make the ring slick.

Kakashi expelled a deep breath as he saw her coat the ring with the remnants of their combined orgasms. He was going to get hard fast if she didn't hurry up.

She finished prepping the ring and moved to place it over the tip of his cock.

Sakura glanced at him and saw that he was watching her. She slipped it down to the base of his member, and after a few quick adjustments it was seated flush against his heated body. He clenched a hand in her hair when he felt the ring fit snug as it was pushed into place.

Kakashi had never used one before, but he was never opposed to using toys and aids in the bedroom. He was also going to need this ring for what he had planned.

He moved her head to his cock and wordlessly encouraged her to put it in her mouth. The oral stimulation was helping to get a rise out of him, but it wasn't fast enough for his liking. As per usual, it would be at least twenty-five minutes between erections, and it wasn't even pushing five minutes yet.

"You once used your chakra to subdue my erection. Use it now to bring it back," he groaned. There was a timeline that he wanted to stick to and he was going to need her help to achieve it.

He tugged at her hair once more, encouraging her to continue sucking him until she made him hard again.

Sakura cupped his balls and encouraged her chakra to bring back his hardness. Even as absentminded as she was right now, she knew she had to be careful, especially since she's never used her chakra for this purpose before. But the look on Kakashi's face only showed pure pleasure.

When she was finished aiding his erection back to full hardness, she found that he was much larger than normal. A wonderful side effect of cockrings.

She looked up to him and saw his eyes closed and his chest rapidly expanding and contracting with every heavy breath.

"Are you okay?" she asked curiously.

"Gods, yes. It's hard to resist not bending you over the desk and fucking you until we're both spent," he groaned. His hips pushed forward as if his cock was searching for a warm place to rest.

"Why resist?" she asked temptingly.

He opened his eyes and looked down at her intensely. "Because you asked for a specific thing, and now you're getting it."

He pulled her back up to her feet and spun them around so that his back was resting against the wall and she was pulled snugly against him. With her hands still tied, she had no control over her movements.

But she enjoyed how he was handling her—how he was now tilting her head so that he could kiss her deeper. She was enjoying every bit of it. Every bit of his big strong hands cupping her face, and controlling every press of their bodies.

Until a second set of strong hands grasped her hips, pushing them harder into Kakashi's straining arousal. She gasped and tried to twist out of his kiss to see who was behind her. Suddenly her bare back was being peppered with sensual kisses—and she was about to object to another man's hands and mouth on her, when out the corner of her eye she saw a familiar shock of grey hair. The second set of masculine hips pushed into her ass, grinding against her while smoldering lips kissed their way up her back, to the shell of her ear where his tongue left a teasing lick.

"This is what you wanted, isn't it?" The second Kakashi's breath ghosted over her ear. She was still kissing the one in front of her and he wasn't relenting, so she couldn't answer verbally. Sakura did the only thing that she could think of—she pushed her hips backwards allowing his shaft to settle between her ass cheeks, and writhed against him.

Her answer seemed to please him well enough as his hips drove forward, pushing her so that she was grinding against the other Kakashi's erection. She moaned in delight as she found herself surrounded by the hot, seductive skin of both of them.

One pair of hands started to undo the sash around her wrists, only to spin her around and retie her wrists together behind her.

Sakura was feeling overwhelmed but excited by being pinned between two Kakashis. She had always been curious about threesomes, but had never thought to use a bushin to get the job done. One Kakashi was often enough for her libido, but now, she was feeling ambitious enough to take on two of them. All she had to do was let go and let Kakashi take control. She trusted him explicitly. She knew that he would push her just to the edge of her limits without ever crossing it, and still be caring enough to make sure that she was thoroughly pleasured.

"On your knees again," one of the Kakashi's growled in her ear. With little else she could do, she did as she was told and sank to her knees between the two men. She wanted nothing more than to grasp both penises in her hands, but with both of them bound behind her back, she could only focus on one at a time.

Parting her lips she took the closest erection into her mouth, bobbing her head up and down on it. Listening to the masculine moans was all the encouragement that she needed to keep going. One set of hands threaded into her hair, keeping a semblance of control on her movements.

Quickly, her head was pulled off of one erection and directed to the other. She felt the body behind her kneel down and reach around her to brush his hands down her body. Calloused palms started at her neck and trailed down her body to her core, cupping the wet heat he found there. He slipped two fingers into her, while his thumb brushed against her clit, just enough to get a reaction from her. She arched her back, pressing into the hand that was between her legs and moaning onto the cock that was thrusting into her mouth.

"Enough," the one behind her murmured as he sunk his hands into her hair and pulled her off. "I want to move on to the next position,"

A line of saliva stretched from her mouth to the erection just inches away from her. She licked her lips clean, breaking that trail, savouring the masculine and musky taste of him on her tongue.

The body behind her shifted her so that she was once more facing him. He pressed her into him as he leaned back allowing himself to fall backwards on the ground, bringing her body down with his. With her hands secured tightly behind her, she had to rely on Kakashi for everything—and so she fell with him and landed flush against his body.

Without the use of her hands, Kakashi completely controlled her—both of them. The one beneath her took her by the thighs and spread her legs over his erection, helping her grind against him, spreading her release over them both.

The second pair of hands took her from behind her, guiding her hips to gyrate more over him. "Sakura, do you understand what's going to happen next?" he murmured in her ear.

Sakura groaned out an affirmative sound, knowing exactly what she had walked into by asking for that specific passage in Icha Icha Tactics. "I brought lube, it's in my purse," she gasped as she undulated in his lap, trying to bring herself to another release. She felt the body behind her briefly disappear and then reappear with a gentle hand on her back, providing some reassurance.

A pair of hands cupped her head and brought her into a searing kiss. "Just relax. I'll take good care of you," he whispered against her mouth.

She nodded her head slightly. She had never allowed any of her previous partners to experiment like this before, but she was curious. With a dominant but gentle lover like Kakashi, she knew that the pain would be minimal before the pleasure took over.

Sakura dropped her head down on Kakashi's shoulder, tilting her head, trying to look behind her. She was curious to see what was going to happen to her. However when a set of hands started to run through her hair, she looked over to yet another naked Kakashi who knelt beside her face.

"That's right baby, there's three of us. Just like you asked for," he murmured as he ran a hand down her cheek to her chin. "Head up now, and open your mouth," he demanded softly. Using her core muscles, she raised her chest off of the Kakashi below her. He helped support her as she turned to the side. "That's a good girl, open wide and stick your tongue out," he instructed as his grip tightened on her chin.

She happily complied, eager to have him in her mouth again.

"That's right baby, take me all in. Right to the back of your throat," the one below her commanded.

She was so focused on the man using her mouth for his pleasure, that she almost forgot about the one behind her, who started tracing one finger up and down her slit, up to her pucker hole, getting her used to the idea of some attention there.

The hand passed up and down a few more times, spreading the fluids that collected between her legs. Once more the hand disappeared from her body as the Kakashi below her tensed—it seemed that the Kakashi behind her had grasped his erection and guided it into her wet heat. A chorus of moans resonated through the room, as the group voiced their love of the intimate connection. The moan coming from Sakura caused pleasureful vibrations for the Kakashi who continued to slip in and out of her mouth. She tried to focus on the man she was sucking off, but when the Kakashi below her started to rock his hips deeper into her, she was quickly overwhelmed.

The hands on her ass returned, gently teasing and testing the resistance there. A cold stream of lube dripped down between her cheeks, the fingers spreading it generously, thoroughly coating her. Kakashi continued to move in and out of her, but his pace wasn't demanding, just consistent. Just enough to keep her on edge of her next orgasm.

When a finger pushed into her, it felt tight and odd, but not painful—not when it was just one finger. When it sank up to the knuckle she felt full—full in a way that she had never felt before. When he slowly pulled it out and then in again, another long drawn out moan escaped Sakura. She felt her eyes roll to the back of her head as her body savoured the eroticism of the moment.

"It seems that you're liking all of this attention, Sakura," he intoned and thrust deeply into her a few times from all directions. She couldn't tell where his voice was coming from—but what did it matter. He was all of them. They all knew her so well, knowing just what to do to drive her to the edge, while holding back exactly what she wanted.

Another spurt of lube dribbled between her cheeks as the one behind her pulled out completely, only to push back in with an extra finger. Now she was even more full, and even closer to reaching that pinnacle that she chased so desperately.

Three sets of hands held her in place and brought her pleasure. Three choruses of heavy breathing; panting with her as they all moved together. The powerful scent of Kakashi surrounding her from all sides was a forbidden dream come true, one that she never thought she would ever experience. She could only see the one in front of her—only see the base of his cock that disappeared into the patch of silvery hair. Following that trail upwards to his abdomen, she finally met his eyes. They were intensely dark with lust and purpose as he continued to use her mouth. It was probably just as much of a fantasy for Kakashi as it was for herself to play out this scenario.

It was hard to concentrate on just one of the men giving and taking pleasure. It was also hard for her to give pleasure back to him in equal amounts. She desperately wanted to give back, but it was impossible in this situation where there were too many of them to take care of at the same time.

"Come Sakura, come all over my cock. Don't hold out on me," Kakashi growled from below her.

One of the hands on her ass pushed her down as the man below her picked up his pace, almost forcing her to orgasm. But she would happily take all of him—she just had to let go and let him do all the work. There would be other times where she'd be sure to take charge and bring him as much pleasure as she possibly could. Until then, she'd just have to take whatever he was willing to give.

"Stop thinking and start feeling Sakura. I know you're trying to think. Just stop. Just feel me—feel how excited you make me, how hard you make me. I'm so lucky I can fulfill your fantasies and make you feel so good. Tell me what you feel when I'm in you," came his voice as he pulled out of her mouth. The straining erection jutted out before her, just out of reach of her well-used mouth.

All the bodies paused around her as her body vibrated with pleasure. It was so hard to focus when the thrum of her heartbeat pulsing around him was all she could feel.

"Tell me now," he grunted when she didn't speak immediately. A strong spank on her ass cheek had her moaning in compliance.

"Oh kami, it feels so good. I can't think straight enough to explain it," she said between moans and sighs. "So full, but not full enough."

"Can you handle the next step?"

Sakura whimpered. "Please, Hokage-sama, please fill all my holes. Please," she moaned heatedly.

"Fuck, Sakura. You just had to say that," he growled as he pushed all the way into her. "Hang on, I'm going to take good care of you and make you come so much that you won't be forgetting this any time soon."

She felt the Kakashi beneath her shift as he brought his legs up so that his feet were planted strongly on the ground, giving him the perfect leverage to buck up into her more powerfully. The hands behind her held her in place while continuing to tease her anal passage, while one hand soothed her red abused cheek. Once more the Kakashi in front of her took the base of his penis and moved it back to her mouth. He shifted his strong hands and cupped her chin to bring her eyes to attention there.

"Look at how hard you've made me. Watch me pump it while I fuck your tight little holes," he said as he slowly pumped the thick length before her eyes.

Nothing could be more erotic than this. She couldn't hold back as her inner muscles clenched around his thick cock and fingers. Sakura tried to subdue her screams as the Kakashi below her fuckedher at a pace she was both loving, but dreading as she knew she'd be unimaginably sore the next morning.

"Don't you dare hold back that scream," he commanded with a strangled groan.

He was so close to coming, but he needed to stick to his plans—it was torture but he had to pull out before he came.

Just as he pulled out, the Kakashi behind her sunk his own rock-hard length into her quivering hole. He plunged in and out of her so deep and at just the right angle, that he prolonged her orgasm.

"Fuck me, you feel so good, Sakura. You're so hot and wet, just for me. I'm just going to continue to use your tight holes while you come around my cock."

It was all nearly too much—the hands, the heat, the thick erections, around and in her, all of them, all of Kakashi bringing her to such intense pleasures that she continued to shudder and moan as her body spiraled out of control. When she first started sleeping with him, she knew that Kakashi was going to be a thorough and amazing lover, but now after experiencing the kind of consuming desire they had for each other, she doubted there would ever be another as good as him.

The clone behind her drove himself into her, while her sensitive clit was forced to rub against the slippery erection of the Kakashi below her. At the same time, the man before her rubbed his seeping head against her lips briefly to get her attention. She tried to reach out with her lips to encase his erection in her hot mouth, but it was still too far away, so she settled for sticking out her tongue and licking the sensitive slit where the precum was beading out.

Kakashi groaned loudly when her little pink tongue darted out and licked up what seeped out of him. He knew that he couldn't orgasm yet. That was not the plan, and he wanted nothing more than to stick to the plan that would have them all consumed with overwhelming pleasure.

"Ahh! Kakashi please! I'm so... I can't... Ahhh!"

"Just keep going, Sakura. I love how you feel around me. I can feel my own cock through your ass. Fuck, I can't wait to fill you up, and I think you're just about ready for that. Are you ready for it? Are you ready for all three of my cocks to fill you up?"

Sakura moaned while nodding her head. "Yes, fill me up, please, fill me up with you, all of you." She was pushed forward with each of his forceful thrusts behind her. She thought that she would feel degraded for this, but instead she felt empowered. He wanted her enough to do this to her and if she wanted, she could stop this with one word. This was exactly what she wanted.

"Beg for it more. Tell me how you want me to fill you up," he demanded, slamming into her harder but at the same maddening pace. "I know you can use your words."

Her body had stopped pulsing as strongly as she came down from her last orgasm, even though he was still slowly pushing in and out of her. She didn't know which one to look at, so she gazed into the eyes of the real Kakashi sprawled beneath her as she spoke. "Please Hokage-sama, please use me until you come. Put all your thick cocks inside me and fill me up. Please come deep inside me," she begged as she strained forward to lick the penis in front of her.

"Good girl, hold still," he instructed.

He undid the red sash that tied her hands behind her, rubbing up and down her arms until feeling returned back to them. "You're going to need to hold yourself up while I hold you in place. And if you're a good girl, I'll be sure to give you an orgasm you'll never forget."

"Yes, sir. Please sir," she moaned.

The Kakashi behind her slipped out of her with a loud groan and a sloppy sound, as the rementants of her own climax trailed out of her. Sakura whimpered as she found herself suddenly completely void of him.

She wanted this, she just hadn't known how much she wanted it. And now she couldn't think of anything she could want more. Not believing that she could have such an amazing partner like Kakashi, she figured this was a once in a lifetime experience, and she was so ready.

She raised herself on her hands while spreading her knees out wider and angling her ass further up in the air.

Her orgasm had subdued enough that the Kakashi below her wouldn't be tortured with a strong orgasmic pulse. All three of the Kakashis angled themselves, each placing the heads of their cocks at her openings, each getting ready to sink into her.

"Sakura... I wanted to thank you. You are a fantasy come true," he said sweetly, as he bent down and kissed her between her shoulder blades. A brief smile crossed her face which quickly disappeared as warmth turned to an intense thrill when all three men sank into her.

"MmmAhhh!" Sakura screamed in pleasure. Her body immediately reacted to being so filled by all of them at once. It was more intense than she could have ever imagined.

"Oh fuck, Sakura you feel so amazing. I can feel you still pulsing. Oh fuck, you're going to make me come so fast. I don't think I can last much longer. Hang on darling," he whispered from below her.

Kakashi had never felt anything like this before. He could feel himself through her thin anal membrane, which only made him pump deeper and at an angle where he could feel himself more. He believed that there was never anything wrong with any type of pleasure as long as it was between consenting adults. Thank god for Sakura and for her liberation in knowing her own body and for allowing this fantasy to come true.

His hands gripped tightly at any flesh that he could grab as he filled her. He had to constantly fight against the urge to let go and come inside her. _Just a few more minutes_ , he thought desperately.

She had to be close. She's been over-stimulated from playing with herself all day and that was before showing up at his office. He knew that he could get her off pretty quickly by reaching around to play with her clit.

He planned on doing just that, but he knew that as soon she began to climax, he wouldn't last a moment longer. And for now he was thoroughly enjoying the hot friction of gliding in and out of her silky body. Nothing would beat the feeling of her tight body as he sank into her wet warmth over and over.

"If only you could see how lovely you look stretched around my cocks. You're so hot Sakura—my wet dream come true. Every time my balls slap against your hot skin makes it that much harder to resist just letting go and filling you up. I can't wait to see my cum seeping out of all of your holes." He dragged a finger gently down her spine, and back up flaring over her ribcage—it was such a contrast from the rough pleasure of his hard cocks pushing and pulling out of her.

"I want to spank your pretty little ass so hard you won't be able to sit until tomorrow...I promise I'll kiss it better. Is that okay?"

With her mouth full, there was no way Sakura could give a vocal answer, so she had to answer through body language alone. She arched her back more, and swayed her hips back and forth making her ass wiggle even though it remained full of Kakashi.

Kakashi understood her gesture and carefully rubbed the soft skin of her ass cheek, worshiping her body before—

— _SMACK_. The sound echoed sharply in the room.

Her skin immediately puckered red. He couldn't help but stare at the red mark forming on her sweet cheek as he pushed his thick cock deeper into her.

_It was going to be so hard to top this encounter with her_ , he thought dizzily. He may never be able to top it.

Sakura was so overwhelmingly enthralled by the feeling of Kakashi completely surrounding her. It was amazing to feel so full of him, to feel so raw and at his mercy—it was exhilarating. She felt so empowered by him, she couldn't help but moan against his cock in her mouth.

"Sakura," he growled as he pushed into her again. "I need you to come. I need you to come around my cock. I can't last much longer, but you have to come first," he demanded. He rocked his hips below her while gripping and adjusting her own. He angled her forward and hit deeper inside of her.

But it wasn't enough to bring her to peak.

He wanted—no _needed_ —her to come one last time. There was only so much more that he could handle, pumping out of her from all angles as he was. Especially since when the clones disappeared, he'd gain all of their experiences and feelings. It was both something that he was looking forward to and worried about. Three simultaneous orgasms might kill him, but he figured it'd be worth it. Anything was worth it if it allowed him to be like this with Sakura.

The Kakashi behind her had been keeping her hips tilted in such a way that it made it easier for him to reach a deeper penetration, but he too needed her to come. Reaching around her body, his fingers searched for her pearl of pleasure. It was time to bring this delight to a peak.

He played with her clit, circling it briefly, knowing that it wouldn't be long before he brought her to her final—and hopefully most powerful—orgasm.

Sakura moaned loudly as fingers found her clit. Feeling so full and so consumed by Kakashi, she thought she had nothing left to give. She couldn't help the groan that slipped from her throat and around the cock that occupied her mouth.

The silky hardness of his cock in her mouth while his balls bounced against her ass was all it took to reach that final orgasm. Closing her eyes, she let out a long and low moan as she came. Lights danced behind her eyes as her body gave way to bliss.

His hot seed spurt into her mouth and he groaned and gripped her hair.

"Fuck, Sakura!" he grit as he pumped into her mouth a few more times until he began to go flaccid.

"Ugh, so hot. Drink me up Sakura, I'm all yours," he panted as his balls continued to clench and spill down her throat. He pulled out of her mouth, letting a dribble of cum stretch between her lips and his cock.

When he looked down at her lustrous face, he could tell that this was exactly what she'd needed to satiate her desires. She had come to him nearly begging for him, and he would make sure that, as her partner, he'd always do whatever he could to fulfill those needs.

With a few last pumps from the clone using her mouth, she was surprised when his body vanished before her.

The Kakashi beneath her gripped her tightly as he moaned loudly. She knew that his experiences were hitting him full force.

To entice him further she clenched her inner muscles around him, knowing that it would push him to the brink.

He moaned louder, filling the room with a low snarl. "You little vixen. Do you want this to end right now? Do you want me to continue to fill you while you ride out your own orgasm, or do you want me to pull out now and let you fall apart with me only in your ass. Would you like that?"

Looking down at Kakashi's sweaty face, she smirked as she licked her lips and swallowed the mouthful of cum from his first orgasm. "Delicious," she purred.

He dropped his head back against the ground with a thud. "You know, you're really asking for it, right? You want me to be even rougher with you?" he asked incredulously.

"I can handle it. I don't want you to hold back on me, come on Kakashi. Fuck me," she taunted him.

She gasped as his hand smacked her soundly on her ass once more.

"As you wish," the two men said in unison.

The Kakashi below her hugged her tightly to his body with a strength that she wasn't used to. It left her no wiggle room, not that she had planned on wiggling out of this. The Kakashi behind her paused in his pumping and adjusted his position, moving one leg to the side of her body, while tipping her hips up and back even more.

Sakura gripped his shoulders as both men pushed even deeper and harder into her. She couldn't help the little screams that wrenched out of her at their precise timing and synced thrusts. Sometimes they'd pace it so that they'd both pull out and thrust in at the same time, and then they'd switch it up, taking turns fucking her. And there was no other word for it: they fucked her and dominated her while she screamed in pleasure and took it all.

When fingers once more found her clit, she tried to squirm away. It was all too much—not yet painful, but bordering too close on it from too much pleasure on such a sensitive part of her.

"Ugh, Kakashi, it's too much," she begged.

"You said you can handle it, and I know it'll mean a stronger orgasm for you, darling, just take it. Let me give you the pleasure that your body craves. Give in to me and let go. I'll take good care of you," he growled in her ear in a heated whisper, while his bodies surged powerfully into hers.

She was so close to what she expected to be the most powerful orgasm she'd ever have.

Sakura began to feel her whole body go tense as Kakashi pushed her to her next orgasm. She was pinned between both Kakashis, unable to do anything other than to hang on to his sweaty body.

Together, they urged her to her final climax.

Her toes curled, her breath caught and her inner muscles clenched around both men as her body flew apart. Burying her face into his muscular chest, she let out a keening moan, reaching her final peak. She heard a grunt from the man behind her as her body gripped his erection. His hands tightened on her hips as he pumped into her a few final times and reached his own finish.

Feeling a few tender kisses peppered along her spine and hearing him sigh her name, she knew that the Kakashi behind her was finally spent. A few seconds later, he poofed out of existence.

To have him suddenly out of her felt like she was missing an integral part of her.

Kakashi was completely overwhelmed by the memories of both of his clones and then his own experiences with Sakura. When she had climaxed that last time, it was enough to push his clones over, and he was about to follow.

He nearly howled when the memories of his last clone were transferred to him.

"Oh fuck, Sakura. You're a goddess. You feel so amazing coming around me. I'm at my limit," he moaned. With a few last powerful thrusts, his balls clenched and he spilled his seed deep inside of her.

A growl wrenched from him as he finally felt spent, and he let his body go slack around her.

His chest still heaving as he gasped for breath, he closed his eyes and tried not to move. He hadn't meant to, but he was sure that he passed out for a moment or two.

Between the long and tiresome day in the office and then this fantastic interlude with Sakura and his two clones—this was sure to be an evening he would never forget.

"Sakura, you okay?" he murmured into her hair. The sun was setting, casting bright streams of light through the windows. She had gone completely limp on top of him but for her core that still fluttered around his cock inside of her.

He gathered the little strength he had left to slip his hand to her neck and briefly massage it.

"Talk to me Sakura. Let me know you're okay," he said, a little worriedly. He had been much more rough and forceful than their usual trysts, but it was what she had wanted, and he was all too happy to help her fulfill her wishes. It didn't mean he didn't worry about her, though.

"Sleepy. Wake me in twenty," she whispered into his neck.

"Okay darling, but I've got to shift you a little. I need to remove the cockring," he warned her.

"Mmm..." was her only response.

He pulled her up his body, which forced him to slip out of her wet heat, pulling a cry from her. He felt their combined fluids drip out of her and down onto him. His cock twitched at the flashes of memory of coming inside every single one of her holes.

"I'm sorry darling, I'm sure you're sore. Let me just take my ring off and we can get you home into a warm bath," he soothed.

She shook her head subtly against his chest. "No, I like the feel of you in me. Lets just rest here for a bit, but come back inside me," she complained, half asleep.

Kakashi had finished slipping off the ring with a grunt. His own body was sore from the excessive use and the tight ring around his still hard cock. He looked at the tiny ring that had helped him achieve such pleasures—he'd be sure to use it again.

While Kakashi stared at the ring, Sakura grew impatient and pushed her body down along his body until she was once more perched atop of his rapidly softening member. She reached behind her and grabbed for his cock and pushed the tip back inside of her with a loud sigh.

Kakashi grunted as his sensitive head was pushed back into her warm heat. "Gods, Sakura, careful. I'm a little overused right now," he chuckled tiredly.

"But you feel so good in me," she whispered as she nuzzled into his neck. "I like feeling full of you."

Groaning once more, he was still hard enough to settle deeply inside her. "Relax Sakura, You've got me in you once more. Just rest now, I've got you." He calmed her by rubbing a hand up and down her back.

Slowly, Kakashi focused on calming his breathing and relaxing his strained muscles. While he did that, he kept a reassuring hand running up and down her sweaty back.

They spent almost half an hour like that.

Kakashi could finally feel her heavy breathing calmed down as she came down from her orgasmic high. Kakashi felt fucking amazing—full of male pride and ego. He had thoroughly quenched Sakura's intense lust, while having four powerful consecutive orgasms himself—something he hadn't done since his randy years as a teen.

With a settled Sakura still recovering on top of him, he stretched his arms over his head. Kakashi could tell that Sakura was starting to come back to herself when she brought her hands to her face and groaned.

She shifted around on top of him enough to have him slip out of her once more. It caused another low moan to be dragged out of both of them. A shiver raced down Kakashi's body as his member left her warmth.

Sakura sighed loudly and pushed her face into his sweaty, strong chest. "Oh shit... what have I done?" Sakura whispered, mostly to herself.

"Would you like to me to help you recall every delicious detail of that mind blowing bought of sex?" Kakashi asked teasingly. He took a deep breath, and enjoyed feeling her body clinging to his.

"I just violated the Hokage. In his office. In my best friend's office! In my previous teachers' office! Both of them!" Sakura said in disbelief as she pressed her face further into her hands, trying to shield herself from her reality.

"Technically, I'm not really the Hokage. I'm just helping Naruto out for a few weeks." Kakashi started stroking her back, trying to get her to calm down. At the same time he was trying his best not to laugh at her reaction. He knew that she wasn't a prude, but she wasn't the type to have such voyeuristic and intense sex.

"Kakashi! I came here with the intent of fucking you! And I did!"

"And it was delicious." Kakashi replied calmly, his face breaking out in a broad grin. "Sakura calm down. Did you enjoy it?" Kakashi rolled them over and pinned her with the weight of his sweaty body. Even though it'd be hours before he got hard again, he couldn't help but brush his lips across anywhere and everywhere he could reach.

"Of course I did! I'm pretty sure you know that I enjoyed myself. It was the best sex I've ever had. Couldn't you tell? I can't even remember how many orgasms you gave me," Sakura replied honestly, yet she still seemed preoccupied with her mortification of what she had done.

"You had six," he said with pride. "And you were rather vocal for each one," Kakashi said dreamily, still kissing across her chest.

"Oh fuck! What if someone heard?!" Sakura was still panicking.

Kakashi's mouth closed over one of her sensitive nipples, lavishing it with more attention. "I'd be more worried about the two ANBU guards who were hidden in the office, and who were meant to stay around me as protection. I think we gave them a bit of a show." Kakashi's hot breath puffed out over her nipple as he spoke. Her one nipple was already going redder with attention so he moved to the other one, and not a second later, his head was pulled from her breast.

Sakura's hands were on either side of his head and she lifted it to get him to look at her.

"What?" The blood drained from her face. "You better be kidding. Please tell me you're kidding," Sakura begged.

Kakashi slid his body up so he completely covered her. He was enjoying the feel of her taut nipples brushing against his chest. Looking down at her, he tried to get her to come to reason. "Sakura, calm down. They left before I stripped you. I mean, I'm pretty sure they did. They are the best at hiding their presence, however I'm sure this is not the most shocking thing they've seen happen in this office. But don't worry, they're known for their discretion."

"Oh Fuck! Oh fuck, oh fuck, oh fuck! I'm so embarrassed."

Kakashi could see that she was going to need additional reassurance, so he adjusted his position so that he was on his knees, but was still pinning down her legs with his own. He was definitely sore, and knew that he'd be even more so tomorrow, but it was worth every erotic moment of this afternoon. He brought both of her hands together and held them against the floor with one hand. Moving his head down to kiss her which stopped her worried ramblings.

She looked as if she was about to protest, but he didn't give her a chance.

The kiss was much more gentle than she expected after the debauchery from just minutes ago. She knew that she was slightly overreacting—but she had never been so ravenous before, and certainly never done anything like this. Especially in such a public place, like the Hokage's Office. As long as no one ever found out, she could calm down about it.

When Kakashi felt her go slack and relax into his kiss, he knew that her worries were finally abated. He kept his tight hold on her body and lips for a moment longer.

"Don't worry so much, Sakura. I'll keep your secrets safe with me," he teased.

Sakura sighed contentedly. "And what secrets are you talking about?"

"About your desires to be thoroughly fucked by three of me. I'll keep your dirty little secret, as long as we can consider doing it again one day? Although perhaps not in the office, since anyone could walk in at any moment," he whispered as he nuzzled her chin, peppering it with little kisses.

It was a bit of paradox to Sakura, such a tender moment after such a heated and erotic session. Sighing once more, Sakura ran her fingers through his sweaty hair, brushing it out of his eyes allowing herself a moment to just stare into his eyes. She felt that she could easily spend hours staring at his face, mostly to catch up on all the years that he hid it from her.

However they were rudely interrupted by a loud knock on the door.

"Hokage-sama? Are you still in the office?" a voice came from outside the office.

Sakura's eyes widened in sheer panic as she looked upside down towards the door. Her hands clenched Kakashi's hair hard, nearly pulling it out at the roots.

"Kakashi," she hissed at him.

"Well I am still here in the office. Should I answer?" he taunted her.

"If you answer that door, we're never having sex again."

"Then you better gather your stuff quickly and we'll teleport to my place. I think a relaxing bath is in order for both of us."

Kakashi quickly rose to his feet and put out a hand to help Sakura up. She stumbled briefly as she was brought to her feet. Reaching out, Kakashi put a steadying hand on her naked hip.

"You okay?" he asked quietly as he placed a hand under her chin to raise her eyes to meet his.

"I'll be fine. Just a little wobbly on my feet right now," she said distractedly as she looked around at her stuff.

She didn't miss the cocky grin on his face as she gingerly bent down to pick up her clothing and purse.

"Hokage-sama?" the voice came again. It sounded distinctly like Shikamaru's bored voice. The doorknob jingled as the intruder tried to enter.

Sakura sent another scathing look at Kakashi as she held all of her stuff against her chest. "What the fuck are you waiting for?" she demanded under her breath.

"Just you," he said as he held out a hand for her. He had gathered all of his clothing and held them in one hand, while she took his free hand. He pulled her to his naked body and kissed the top of her head as he began the jutsu for transportation. Just as the jutsu initiated, the door opened and the occupants vanished.

Shikamaru entered the office, and quickly looked around, knowing that Kakashi was long gone. But some sort of buzzing noise caught his attention. He walked towards the noise to investigate, and saw an odd-shaped toy buzzing on the floor. He knew exactly what it was the moment he saw it, but knew better than to touch it. It was so much easier to just walk away and act like he'd never seen the sex-toy still vibrating on the floor.

* * *

Please be gentle with reviews, since I'm nervous about this one. Thank you!


	14. Something Amiss

A big thanks goes out to Alien-Writes and Eekhoorntjes who helped me so much with this chapter! I'm so grateful to both of them!

I also want to thank everyone who have read this story and left wonderful reviews for me! Each review brings big smiles to my face, so thank you so much!

Enjoy!

* * *

Looking weary, Kakashi sat behind the well worn Hokage's desk, while Sakura stood cheerfully before him. She couldn't help but grin for two reasons: one, she was happy to be going out and two she couldn't help but smirk at his sour expression. She had gladly been called out to go on a mission that required her medic skills, and so she was elated for a short reprieve from her work at the hospital—as much as she loved being at the hospital, the monotony was starting to grow stale. She missed the days of action and the unexpected.

On the other hand, Kakashi looked worn out already after a week as temporary Hokage, even if serving the village was something that he excelled at. He was brilliant at planning and strategizing, organizing teams and missions and all that went into making sure that Konoha shinobi were continuously employed but still came home safe. That was why he had originally been chosen for the position of Kage. He was a genius, which was why he could handle the rigorous demands of the job, but with one look at him, you could tell that he wanted to give the hat back to Naruto as soon as possible. Nevertheless, he would do his duty for his village.

Taking a moment to admire the man, Sakura couldn't help but look beyond the traditional robes, remembering the body that was obscured by those baggy clothes. They made him look older than he was, instead of the lean, well-built man who was amazing at keeping her up throughout the night.

Sakura, Shikamaru, Genma, and Tenzo all stood waiting for the debrief on their mission. It was a bit of a powerhouse type of team—Sakura thought that it was more than required to complete any mission that they were hired for. But perhaps Kakashi had an inkling of something terrible that could happen.

"Shikamaru is lead on this mission. You'll be escorting Daimyo Kobayashi to the Land of Canyons and back. It shouldn't take more than a week." His voice seemed somber, even for this time in the morning.

Both Genma and Tenzo were giving Kakashi an odd look, but it seemed that he was ignoring them. Kakashi was busy staring down at the mission scroll in front of him.

"All the information is in the scroll that Shikamaru has. Please leave within the hour. Sakura, stay back for a moment," Kakashi commanded. He was sounding and looking glum. But that could be because it was so early in the morning, and that he had never really been the chipper early bird type.

"Meet at the main gates in an hour," Shikamaru called out as he strolled out of the office. Genma and Tenzo followed behind him slowly. It seemed that none of her team were excited about getting out, like she was. But nothing was going to bring down her mood.

Kakashi stood up slowly and walked around to the front of his temporary desk, slumping against the front of it. As the door shut, Sakura took a step closer.

She reached out and played with the edges of his robe. She smiled at him, excited to be getting away from the village, even if it meant being apart from him for a bit. All too often, she got forgotten about for mission assignments as she spent all of her time in the hospital. That and she was sure that Naruto liked keeping her in the village, for whatever reason. She was getting a hunch that Kakashi might have the same preference.

"You've got a good team, and there hasn't been as many issues in Canyons since the Fourth War, so it should be a straightforward mission," he said reassuringly. "But they asked for a high caliber medic, and you're the only one available right now, since Shizune is away and isn't due back until tomorrow. Unfortunately this mission can't wait."

Sakura was slightly confused with his apprehension, since she knew that this was going to be an easy mission. Especially with the strong and diverse team that she was a part of, so she didn't understand his reluctance of sending her out.

"I'm not worried in the slightest, Kakashi. It seems like a fairly above-board type of mission, and I trust the team. Don't worry so much." She reached out and cupped his masked cheek. "Just think of good things while I'm away—like what we did right here in this office," she teased quietly.

He leaned into her warm hand while looking into her bright emerald eyes. They shone with happiness and trust. However, something about sending her out just wasn't sitting well with him. He knew that sending out his personal guards might be ridiculous, but with him acting as Hokage, there was a whole ANBU squad watching his every movement, so he doubted he was in any danger. He wanted to make sure that her chances to be safe on this mission were high—even if he wasn't there for her this time.

"I'll be back in a week," she said quietly. With a smile on her face, she reached down and gave him a quick peck on his masked cheek, and then turned and left the room with a bounce to her step.

Kakashi remained sitting on the desk, watching the door close behind him. Something just didn't feel right to him and he couldn't put his finger on it.

He moved back at his desk and looked dejectedly at the mounds of paperwork that seemed to have piled up in the last few weeks before Naruto took some time off.

He sent Shikamaru out on this team with Sakura, even though he had relied so heavily on the passive man during his tenure of Hokage. Kakashi wanted his brilliance at strategies and foresight on that team. Shizune was due back by tomorrow morning and he was sure that she wouldn't mind stepping back in to help him out for a day or two. He just had to survive until she was back.

He heaved a dramatic sigh to no one but himself—he was so happy that there was only a week left until Naruto was back.

* * *

The following day started out fine for Kakashi. It felt just like any other day—nothing out of the ordinary.

Lots of annoying paperwork and meetings. Shizune had come back and thankfully agreed to help him out in the organization of his office while Shikamaru was away. She needed the cursory day off after a mission, but she said she had no problem coming in the next morning to help him out. He just had to survive until then.

New missions going out, finished missions coming in. It was the basic routine of the Hokage. The days were long; however, that was nothing new. Kakashi wanted to help Naruto out by completing some of the items that had been left on the back burner for the past few months, so he was staying longer than normal to tie up some loose ends.

Another day done and Kakashi was spent. Deciding that he was too tired to hit the pub on the way home, Kakashi strolled down the quiet streets and back to his empty home. It was almost too quiet and calm there. It didn't help but add to the feeling that something just wasn't right. He put the kettle on, hoping that one of Sakura's teas would help him relax. He wasn't even sure when he had started keeping some of her tea here.

Something was off, and he couldn't put his finger on it. This _thing_ that felt amiss had started plaguing him just after lunch yesterday—and it hadn't left him yet.

He couldn't remember if perhaps Sakura had asked him to do something at her place. Without waiting for the kettle to finish boiling, he popped over to her place and looked around. The stove was off, the refrigerator was empty of any perishable foodstuff, and her plants were watered.

Nothing was out of place. But he still couldn't put his finger on what was bugging him. So as a precaution, he summoned Mio and Tamotsu.

"Can you stay here and take care of Sakura's home while she's gone? She isn't due back for a few more days, but something feels off. If anything happens, please let me know immediately. Also notify me the second she gets back." He looked at the pups. This was a good easy job for them to practice following commands. "Try not to make too much of a mess, and try to keep at least one of you here at all times." He looked down at the two dogs sitting politely, waiting to start their mission. Tamotsu was likely to protect her place fiercely—since he was rather defensive of Sakura since their initial meeting—while Mio was smart enough to be the brains behind taking care of the absentee medic's home. They were a good team for this little mission.

"Thank you, and I'll check back the day after tomorrow." He left the pups in her living room, feeling slightly better that her place was going to be looked after.

Now he just had to get home and rest. He had another full day of paperwork and meetings to face tomorrow.

* * *

The days passed slowly for Kakashi.

He was keeping on top of all of the paperwork for Naruto. In fact, he probably hadn't worked this hard while he held the title himself. However, he felt that he owed it to Naruto to go above and beyond his typical duties. The Nanadaime was a young father, and his family deserved to spend time with him, rather than having him work long hours in the coming weeks.

Plus Kakashi was bored. He didn't have anyone to go home to and most of his friends were out on missions. There was nothing to take him away from working late into the night and sometimes into the wee hours of the morning.

Over the week, he stopped in a few more times at Sakura's apartment to check in on the pups. The pups looked confused every time he had shown up. Everything seemed to be fine and nothing was out of the ordinary. But something still just felt off—and it was rare that his instincts were incorrect.

Regardless of his sixth sense going haywire, there was nothing more he could do right now, so he continued to push on with the endless paperwork and meetings that kept Konoha running smoothly.

* * *

It was long after dinner one night that he heard a light scratching on the door of the Hokage's office. Kakashi put down the scroll he was reading through to go investigate.

He suspected it was one of his ninken pups and he wasn't surprised when he saw the little ball of white fur.

"Sakura is home," she said flawlessly. It surprised him how quickly Mio was able to pick up and perfect her human speech. And it was perfect for times like these. The relief he felt by hearing that she was home surprised him.

He knelt down to scratch her ears. "Thank you, Mio. Anything else to report?"

"She's hurt. Not big hurts, but small hurts." He sighed, patted Mio on the head a few times and stood back up. He didn't bother going back to his desk to finish with the scroll he had been reading. He had done enough for the day, and it would still be there waiting for him when he returned in the morning.

He quickly took off the Hokage hat and robes, tossed them onto the chair beside the door and left the office. By the time he reached the front of the building, he was too impatient to leisurely stroll to her home, so he took to the roofs at a semi-casual sprint. He was eager to see the medic and make sure that she was okay. Kakashi highly doubted that she would go get herself checked out by a medic as she had always demanded of him after his missions. Plus, he didn't trust her to take care of herself as well as she took care of everyone else.

He wasn't sure what to expect when he arrived at her home. He was sure she was tired from the mission, but he just wanted to check in on her to make sure that she was okay, and to see what these "little hurts" were.

He honestly didn't know what was going on between them. But he craved her body almost all of the time. He didn't expect the desire for her to be so strong, so addictive. It wasn't just for a woman or any woman—it was for this woman and _only_ this one. These feelings were new for him and definitely were new territories as well.

It was another few minutes before he arrived at her home. Her living room lights were on, and unsurprisingly the balcony door was unlocked—she had been expecting him to visit. He quietly entered and saw Tamotsu curled up on her couch, unfazed by Kakashi entering.

He went over to his nin-ken pup and patted him on his head, like he did Mio. "Thank you for a job well done. I'll take it from here." Tamotsu's tail wagged a few times before the pup poofed away.

Kakashi continued through the apartment looking for Sakura. It only took a second to find her in the bathroom, showering and washing away the mission.

"Kakashi? Is that you?"

"Of course, unless you were expecting another strange man in your bathroom at this time of night." He watched as the shadow behind the curtain moved as she did.

"Nope, you're the only strange one," she teased. "Thank you for leaving Mio and Tamotsu to take care of my place while I was gone."

Kakashi didn't see the need to explain the real reason why he left the two nin-ken at her home. It was easier in this instance to just silently agree with her assumption.

The shower turned off and the curtain opened. He lazily gazed at her wet naked body, trying to suppress the bolt of lust that shot through him. Even peppered with quickly healing bruises and scrapes he was turned on by her.

"How was the mission?" he asked as subtly as he could.

"Uneventful."

He waited for a beat and for her to continue. "That's it? That's all I get? Uneventful doesn't usually give you bruises and scrapes," he pointed out. He studied her closely as she wrapped a towel around her body.

"Do you want my mission report now?" she asked as she walked up to him with only the towel covering her.

He wasn't sure if he wanted her to know just how bothered he was to see marks on her, so instead it was easier to turn things to a sexual nature. Sex was a safe topic for them, since it was what linked them. "I've got other things on my mind besides a formal mission report," he said as she leaned into his body to give him a kiss on his jaw.

He reached up and pulled down his mask so that he could kiss her properly. Kakashi didn't have to lie about how much he enjoyed her being warm and wet and in his hands. His body was so in tune with hers and what she liked, it had quickly become second nature to him. She wrapped her arms around his back while his hands went up into her wet hair to angle her head just a perfect way to deepen the kiss.

However, when she gasped as his hand brushed across a bump on the back of her head, he pulled back immediately, halting the kiss.

"What happened?" he demanded. She instinctively reached for the injury on the back of her head. Kakashi wasn't satisfied with her lack of a speedy response and forcefully turned her around and started searching the back of her head for the bump that she covered with her hand. There was a sizable goose egg on the back of her head. "How did this happen?" he pressed, his voice more harsh than was required.

"It was just a minor accident. Don't worry about it. It'll be healed by morning," Sakura laughed, startled that he was acting as if _he_ was the angry medic. "And with that, I'm going to tuck in, because I've missed my own comfy bed!"

"What if you have a concussion?" he called out to her as she walked past him. She had left the bathroom and headed straight for her bedroom. She tossed the towel onto the edge of the door as she looked for something to wear. Kakashi trailed into her room after her. "If you have a concussion, then you need to be woken up every few hours, don't you?"

The tired medic pulled on a pair of shorts and a tank top, and turned to the man in her room. "And are you volunteering to play nursemaid?" She walked over to where he was standing in the doorway. Her wet hair sending rivulets of water down her breasts and back, letting her clothes go damp where it lay.

She immediately started undoing the buckles to his vest, letting it fall to the ground. With a little help from him, she pulled his sweater off and tossed it aside too. He wasn't about to stop her from removing his clothes. However, it wasn't his original goal to get into her bed when he came over tonight—he had honestly just wanted to check on her to make sure that she was okay.

When her hands reached up his shirt and caressed his chest, he was powerless to stop her. He would let her do anything she wanted to him, since he was so caught up in all things Sakura. It amazed him how quickly he went from needing to know she was okay to just needing her. She pulled off his undershirt, knocking his hitae-ate askew and mussing his hair up even more.

Kakashi kicked off his shoes and started to undo his pants, but he had his mind set to keep his boxers on. He could see how tired she was, and she was technically injured, so he wanted to take it easy—but it was getting hard to resist her wandering hands and hot mouth. Sakura was busy peppering brief kisses up his chest to his jaw and ear. She was so enticing and she knew all of the spots on him that would make him shudder with need and give in.

"Sakura, wait." His words didn't stop her as she pushed his pants down to the ground and pressed herself against his growing arousal. "You're injured and you need sleep, and I honestly didn't come over to have sex with you. I just wanted to make sure that you're okay."

"Is that so?" she asked as she continued to pepper him with kisses, trying to distract him. She palmed his growing erection, making him groan.

"Yes, you little minx." He took a deep breath and gently pushed her back. He kicked off his pants and picked her up without ceremony.

Startled by the sudden change in angle, she squeaked and wrapped her arms around his neck for balance. "What are you doing? You should be treating the injured carefully!"

"Putting you to bed. I'll be waking you up every few hours to make sure that you don't have any brain damage," he said as he kissed her nose. Carefully he dropped her down on the bed, while he got in behind her. She only struggled for a brief second until he placed an arm around her and dragged her into him.

"That's both sweet and insulting," she stated indignantly, but allowed him to manipulate her to his whims. She could still feel his half hard erection against her back, and she knew that she could change his mind in a matter of seconds, but she was sleepy and her head did ache.

"Fine. You big bully," she sighed, lacing her fingers with his.

"You know you like it. Now sleep," he said as he pulled her in tightly against him and carefully nuzzled the back of her head. She breathed in a deep breath and settled into his arms, where she truly was happy.

* * *

Kakashi dozed on and off for the first part of the night. He was fairly used to working on little sleep, so staying awake to wake her up a few times was an easy task. He couldn't help but spend the time thinking about the woman in his arms.

How easy it was to fall into bed with her, his former student no less. What was growing between them startled him to no end. He had tried to not think of her as his former student, but it was hard to forget the age difference between them. He was sure some people would be outraged and would probably ostracize him if it became common knowledge that he was sleeping with his former student, regardless of the fact that she was a grown adult.

To be honest, he had never really spent much time on her as a student. She had been much more self-sufficient than either Naruto or Sasuke had been when they were younger. However, even though he had barely taught her anything during the short period he was her teacher, those technicalities wouldn't matter to the masses.

The more he thought about it, the more he came to the conclusion that this was between Sakura and himself, and the judgements of the villagers didn't matter to him. Kakashi could only hope that _if_ their relationship ever became public knowledge, the negative opinions of the masses wouldn't matter to her either.

It was easy for Kakashi to get caught up in his own wayward emotions while he stared down at the sleeping woman. There was just so much history between them, and now there was more. More of everything: emotions, feelings and strings.

Kakashi determined that he had felt worried over her while she had been away on mission. And now he worried about her again. There were very few words that made sense to him in this situation. It obviously felt wrong for her to be injured while away on a mission, but it felt right that it was him who was making sure she'd be okay now.

There was just so much to think about as he laid there in the dark.

After what he estimated had been close to two hours, he started the gentle process of waking her up. Squeezing her softly around her middle, he quietly hummed in her ear.

"Wake up."

She squinted her eyes closed and shifted in her sleep. He could tell that she was half awake and trying to ignore him. However, Kakashi wasn't about to allow her to fall back asleep, so he rolled them over until she landed on top of him.

"Oof," she grunted.

"Wake up," he repeated as he once more squeezed her against his body.

"Mmm... I'm awake," she mumbled, obviously still half asleep and disgruntled at the change in positions.

"What's your name and my name? And where are we?" he probed.

"'Kashi...what?" she murmured and then tried to snuggle back into his body.

When she didn't continue immediately he grew concerned. "Sakura, wake up. You don't remember the rest?" He sat up, forcing Sakura to fully wake up. She huffed at him, displeased at being woken up, even if Kakashi was mostly naked and had a cute bedhead.

"I'm Sakura, you're Kakashi, we're in my bed in Konoha. And you're annoying. Now let me sleep." She turned over while still on top of him and spread out over him. It was only a moment before her breathing changed back to a sleeping state.

He refrained from laughing since it would likely wake her up and annoy her once more. Instead he returned to his mental debate about the woman who rested on top of him.

Resisting her physically was impossible for him now—even just being around her literally brought a rise out of him. He was sure that she wanted only something physical from him. A way to spend some pent up energy. Sakura was nothing but vocal about the things she wanted and she had never indicated that she wanted anything more than sex—so maybe this was enough for her. Yet the more time that passed, the more Kakashi thought that he wanted more even if he was unsure what 'more' meant. Perhaps with time he could convince her that what they had between them extended further than just a physical draw. But was that even what he really wanted? Could he really see himself in a relationship?

He looked down at the woman who was sprawled on top of him and smiled. Could he be anymore lucky to be here, right now? Just sleeping with a woman was something he rarely did. But he couldn't help but want to spend more time with the pink haired vixen—and not just between the sheets.

It all confused him so much. Nothing was straightforward and easy when it came to sleeping with someone who was one of his important people. He knew her for long enough that a sincere trust had been built between them and he valued that and her, deeper than he was perhaps willing to recognize. It may be too late to take a step back now—now that they were so tangled up in each other.

Heaving a mental sigh, he settled in, stroking her hair to relax himself as he fell into another light sleep.

Kakashi felt that he was falling and falling hard and unable to stop.

* * *

After another few hours had passed, Kakashi's internal clock rang once more and it was time to wake Sakura up again to repeat the same questions. Over his own career, she had this done to him a few times when he had received a sizable blow to his own hard head in the past, so he was familiar with the drill.

"Come on, wake up again." He stroked her hair, trying to wake her up as gently as he could so he wasn't on the receiving end of her bad temper.

She pushed her face into his chest and shook her head no.

"Come on, you know the drill. Who are you? Who am I? Where are we? What day is it?" His fingers pressed into the back of her neck, gently massaging it as she slowly woke up fully.

"Sakura. Kakashi. My bed in Konoha, and depending on what time it is, it's either late Friday night or early Saturday morning," she mumbled out in a rush, trying to go back to sleep immediately.

"It's sometime past midnight so it's technically Saturday morning," he amended. "We'll do this twice more and then you're free from me waking you up in the middle of the night." As he tucked her hair behind her ear, she settled back down for more sleep. His other hand rested on the small of her back where he could feel her back expand and contract as she breathed deeply a few times before once again descending back to sleep.

Unconsciously, she hummed as she reached up and put her arms around the back of his neck and pressed her face into his hot skin. Being wrapped up in her was akin to what he could only describe as perfection.

It scared him that it seemed to be out of his control now. He had no choice, the more he thought about it. He was going to have to convince her to let him stay with her longer.

* * *

Kakashi was finding it impossible to fall into a deep sleep since Sakura was shifting so often while on top of him. He looked at the clock on her nightstand and saw that it was time again to bring her out of her deep sleep. He was feeling a little bad for constantly waking her up, but they both knew it was for her own health.

Running his hand up and down her body, stroking her soft skin gently, he started the routine of waking her once more. He felt her shift restlessly as she tried to ignore him while pressing her face further into him and trying to fall back asleep. Feeling her sigh and snuggle back into him felt more natural than he was comfortable with.

"Hey, wake up for me," he mumbled, his voice groggy while he was half asleep himself. He was already dreading how long the next day was going to be as he would slave away in the office. Kakashi was thankful that there were only three more days of covering for Naruto. Perhaps at the end of the day he could come and mooch dinner off Sakura. For now, he had to make sure that she was on the mend and truly back to normal.

"You know the drill..." he got out with a wide yawn. He caught Sakura staring tiredly up at him. With her half tired, half irritated look, he wasn't sure what he was getting himself into at the moment. To smooth any ruffled feathers, he cupped her cheek and brushed a thumb across her lips—it seemed to work well enough as the angry look slid off her face.

Sakura sighed before answering him. "I'm Kakashi, you're Sakura, and I like it when you fuck me in my bed. Now go back to sleep." She smirked at him and then let her head drop back to his shoulder and nuzzled his neck.

He had to force himself to breathe naturally as he pushed down the things that he was beginning to feel. Now was not the time for those unmanly butterflies in his stomach—now was the time to make sure that she was okay.

"Funny, haha," he said dryly, trying to cover any other emotions he might be showing.

"Come on, Kakashi, I know I'm fine now. Remember, I'm the medic here. Let's just sleep until morning," she grumbled. Her arms tightened around him briefly as she pressed her lips to his pulse for a moment.

Kakashi froze stiff at her tender actions and waited with bated breath for whatever she did next. With yet another sigh, she rolled off him, turned and snuggled back into his side. As subtly as he could, he let out the breath that he was holding in his chest while bringing his arm around her body to keep her tight against himself. Resting his hand in the soft dip of her hips, he reached out to the Icha Icha Tactics he had stashed on her bedside table. Skillfully, he opened it and flipped to a random page with one hand and pretended to read.

There was no way he could truly concentrate on the book in his hands—at least not with the way she was splayed across his bare chest. He could feel every intake of her breath and sigh as it escaped her lips and drifted over his skin. Having her in his arms after her coming home from a mission—albeit hurt—seemed normal. Which couldn't be right. There was nothing normal about the words 'relationship' and 'him'—they just didn't go together. So the questions that kept coming to his mind were: _What is he doing? Could he walk away now? Would she have more of him if he asked? Did he want more?_

There was just too much going through his brain. Too many possibilities— probabilities of unhappy endings. However, when she reached out in her sleep and placed a hand on his chest over his beating heart and pushed her face into his hot skin, all rational thoughts stopped.

Where he was right now was good. Very good.

The way her hot breath rushed over his skin made his own nipples harden. It was easy to remember the times when her mouth trailed across his chest, the way her breath fluttered along his skin. And hearing that she liked their activities—especially here in this bed—he couldn't help the shot of lust that rushed through him.

That lust pushed one set of thoughts to the back of his mind while bringing forth a whole new set of thoughts. He knew his mind wasn't likely to quiet for a while, so he ignored his need for sleep and settled into the world of Icha Icha. At this rate, morning was only a few hours away and he was unlikely to get much more sleep. Especially with her feminine body pressed into his side. It'd be easier at this point to just stay awake until the last check-in with her.

Quietly immersing himself into the pages of his favourite literature, it was the best way to pass the time while the woman beside him slumbered. It was calming to have something so familiar in hand while having something so new to his side.

Page after page, he had kept himself entertained until the small rays of sunlight started coming through the windows. It was almost time for the last check in with her. He placed his book down on the top corner of the bed, out of the way, while he took a moment to just look at her.

One of her hands was between them and rested against her own body while her other hand stretched out and was flat against his chest. With every one of her breaths, her body shifted against his. Her hair tickled his arm slightly as she breathed. She was a complete contradiction—so strong, yet feminine—so capable, yet vulnerable like this. His own emotions confused him during quiet moments like these—throughout the time she had been gone on that mission, things just didn't feel right.

Watching her sleep was likely going to become one of his favourite pastimes. Seeing her nose twitch as if something was tickling it; seeing her lashes rest against the top of her cheek; seeing her lips part as something happened in a dream to make her tongue dart out to lick her lips.

He looked down at her sleeping face, and his chest both tightened and soared at the same time.

He was falling for her.

Kakashi knew that it was too late to stop it—but for now it would have to wait. He couldn't concentrate with her so close—he couldn't think clearly while in her bed. At least now, once he had been sure that she was out of danger from complications from her concussion, he felt comfortable enough to tease her a little.

Sure, he could ask her the standard questions, or he could taunt her with his words and see if he could get a rise out of her—his new favourite pastime.

Shifting his body until he was on his side facing her, he kept a small grin hidden as he pushed his mouth next to her ear.

"Sakura, wake up. Tell me what I want to hear," he purred and nuzzled her ear.

"Mmmm... Kakashi," she moaned as her fingers flexed and gripped his skin tightly, pulling him into her. Sakura was instantly awake and turned on. "Don't stop." There was something so addictive about waking up surrounded by him—especially when he was playing with her sensitive skin so skillfully.

"You've got to answer my questions first," he whispered as his mouth captured the rim of her ear, granting him another lusty moan from her.

"Again?"

"Yes. Now who's your daddy?" he whispered with another tug of her earlobe.

Sakura pulled her head back with a chuckle. "I already have a sensei kink, not to mention a Kage kink. I don't think I need a daddy kink too."

Kakashi loved seeing the way she was relaxed and laughing in his arms. It brought an even bigger smile to his face.

"So you say you're kinky for sensei?" he asked as he rolled them until he was hovering over her. He let his lower half press her body into the mattress while capturing her eyes with his own. Giving her his best smirk, he moved forward for a quick peck on her nose, enjoying this kind of play.

"More like sensei is kinky for me," Sakura said with a wink before rolling back on top of him. " So what do you say, sensei? Feeling hungry?"

"Ravenous," Kakashi murmured as he reached forward to capture her lips in a loud smacking kiss. "I think I'll save you for dessert though."

He smacked her ass lightly, causing her to laugh out loud as she scrambled away from him. "I'm going to need subsistence before you take advantage of your sensei."

Sakura laughed as she patted his cheek. "Last one to the kitchen does the dishes from breakfast!" she sang out as she raced out of her bedroom.

Kakashi flopped back onto her bed. He didn't mind having to do the dishes if it meant that he got to spend more time with her.

This was something he certainly could get used to.

* * *

It was easy. So easy.

His job was to watch her. Stay close to her. But when he was close to her, he was also close to him.

From the perch on the tiled roof, he could clearly see them—study their habits. Watching them fool around nearly made him sick to his stomach, but it was one more thing to endure.

His grip tightened on the kunai he clenched in his hand. His hand itched to lodge it deep into the belly of the man who took everything from him—the man who doesn't deserve any happiness that he was getting from a woman like Sakura. Belly wounds were slow and painful and he wanted to watch the light fade from his eyes.

It disgusted him that she would fall into bed with a man like that. There were better men out there. More honest men. Men who didn't betray fellow shinobi.

How easy it would be to dismiss the others and end their torment right now...

He had been waiting for most of his life for the right moment. But the more he thought about it, the more he knew the time wasn't right. He had plans and visions of how he wanted his solution played out, and a quick death wasn't nearly good enough. It wasn't nearly enough of a reward for how patient he had been over the years.

True retribution could only come with knowledge and understanding of the situation. The full history and the effects of his choices and actions.

And then there would be a slow carving of the man. Piece by piece, he'd explain everything he had endured because of him. It would be measured and violent. He would make sure that the room would be painted red before he was done.

And once he was done, he'd be free of the anguish of seeing him still alive, and he'd finally have his revenge for his family.

His beloved family.

* * *

Thank you for reading ^_^


	15. Something Seductive

I want to give a big _**THANK YOU**_ to **Sarcastic Mommy** and **Bouncy Irwin** who helped me so much with this chapter! I'm so grateful for your help!

Also, Thank you so much to all of the lovely reviewers who make my day each time I get a review! I promise you, they mean the world to me!

And an update on this story: I've started writing at very fast pace, and if it lasts, I'll be able to start posting chapters bi-weekly again! Knock on wood that the muse stays with me, so I can supply you guys with more chapters and faster! We are in the end stretch now too. There's only 22 chapters planned, and it seems that that's going to stick.

Hang on tight for the roller coaster ride!

Thank you!

* * *

Naruto sat behind his desk trying to paint a picture of a perfect leader, calmly waiting for the person he summoned. Even though he tried to wait patiently, he wasn't having much luck sitting still. It was his third day back in the chair, and he'd barely slept a wink since his daughter was born.

Sakura, on the other hand, was reclined in the spare chair, knowing that she could be waiting at least another hour before Kakashi showed up. She had a calm and happy smile on her face as she flipped through a random book she had found in his office.

"Where is he?" Naruto asked grumpily.

"How should I know?" Sakura said lazily.

Naruto looked like he was going to say something, but then quickly closed his mouth before he could figuratively put his foot in it.

"Are you sure you want to work with him on this mission?" Naruto asked carefully.

"Why wouldn't I? I trust Kakashi, and I know he's available to go with me. It just makes sense."

"He umm... kind of stands out in a crowd, you know," he finished feebly.

"That's fine, he's just going to be in the background for this. Don't worry so much. It's going to be fine."

Sakura went back to lazily swinging her feet off of the side of the chair as she sat sideways in it, and continued reading the book. She was always happy to spend some extra time with Naruto—even if he was the Hokage now, she felt relaxed hanging out in his office.

Naruto spent his time alternating between looking at the paperwork that he was supposed to be focused on and glancing either at Sakura or the door where Kakashi would be walking through. He was trying to hide his anxiety, but was failing miserably at it.

"You've got zero poker face, Naruto. What's wrong? Why are you acting like you're trying to be inconspicuous about something?" Sakura asked.

"It's nothing. Nope. Nothing is on my mind," he said nervously.

"Naruto—" she started sharply. Shifting out of the chair, she looked at him as if she was about to pounce in order to beat the information out of him.

"Yo," came the deep voice of her mission partner. Kakashi walked into Naruto's office at the perfect time for the blond man, since Sakura seemed ready to throttle him. "I can come back later if you two are in the middle of discussing something important." He knew better than to get between Sakura's fists and her victim, and he wanted no part of it.

"No, Kakashi, for once your timing is perfect," Naruto said gratefully. He quickly continued, not allowing Sakura the pause she needed to obtain any additional information out of him. "Sakura requested you to accompany her on a mission," Naruto began.

"Okay, sounds good," he smiled at the pair of them. "Where are we going?"

"There is a doctor in Kaminari no Kuni who seems to have created a very dangerous chemical compound that works as a neurotoxin. No one has been able to create an antitoxin for it yet. It has been showing up mainly in small communities, wiping out all of the population within two days after symptoms were noticed," Sakura explained.

"The two of you are being sent to Kaminari to investigate the doctor who created the toxin. You will do anything that needs to get done in order to find out why he's doing it, who is behind it. You will also need to secure samples for analysis or the chemical formula of the toxin," Naruto continued. "The leaders of Kaminari don't have any doctors who are as familiar with poisons or neurotoxins as Sakura and Shizune. Since Shizune is on a diplomatic mission to Cha no Kuni, Sakura is our only viable option and she asked that you be her teammate on this mission."

Kakashi simply nodded his head, waiting for Sakura to continue explaining what she had in mind for the mission.

"We'll be doing some reconnaissance prior to going to a dinner party. There is a medical community gala in two weeks time, and I'll be going as a doctor from Suna, and I think you could work as a waiter. It's a formal event, so do you have a black tuxedo, Kakashi?" Sakura asked teasingly.

"I'm sure I have something that will work. When would you like to leave?"

"Lets leave in 5 hours. That way we'll arrive by tomorrow night," Sakura stated and Kakashi nodded once more. "I'll see you at the gates in a bit."

"Sounds good. I'll be ready," Kakashi said as he kept his hands in his pockets and sauntered out of the Hokage's office.

"Are you sure you want Kakashi and not someone else? I mean what if the target prefers blonds? You could take Ino instead," Naruto tried to persuade her.

"And what if he's not even into women at all, Naruto, have you thought of that? At least with Kakashi there we'll have all bases covered, and we can have each other's backs," Sakura said. "Is there a reason why you don't want Kakashi to work with me?" Sakura turned towards him, glaring at him menacingly.

"No, no! Kakashi is a good choice. It's your mission, you can have whomever you'd like as backup," he retreated with his hands raised in submission.

"Okay, good. I have to go get ready for the mission now, if there's nothing else, I'll take my leave." Sakura waited for her childhood friend to make any other type of comment, but when he remained quiet, she nodded her head once, and left his office.

She had a lot to organize and pack before leaving.

* * *

At the appointed time, Sakura met Kakashi at the main gates, both wearing their customary uniforms for the fast-paced travelling that they had planned on doing. They started down the long road that led from the gates at a steady pace.

"So do you have a game plan in mind for this mission?" Kakashi asked as he walked beside her with his hands in his pockets.

"Well someone from Kaminari will be meeting us at our hotel tomorrow night to debrief us on their findings. They've been conducting surveillance on the good doctor for the past few months and the upcoming formal party is the best time to conduct a face-to-face conversation. However, no one in Kaminari is both a skilled enough kunoichi and a medic, and won't be able to pull off a true interrogation without being caught, which is where I come in," she explained casually.

"And me?"

"I want backup that I can trust."

"Ohhh? Is that it? You don't need me to keep you warm at night?" he asked teasingly.

"No Kakashi, let me be straight about this: we're not having sex while on this mission. We're going to keep it professional and focus on the tasks at hand," she said in all seriousness.

"So then why me? Why not someone else? I'm sure there are other readily available medics who would be better backup than me," he asked curiously.

"Because I trust you explicitly. There's no one I trust more than you," she said in all honesty. "And just so you know, I trusted you just as much before we started sleeping together ."

Kakashi momentarily faltered while walking. He hadn't expected such honesty and trust from her, but he was honoured by it. He quickly recovered and did his best to hide his misstep and keep pace with her.

"Then I promise to be a good boy and keep my hands to myself," he teased.

Sakura rolled her eyes at him while shaking her head. She took the time to study him from the corner of her eye and knew that he would keep his hands to himself for the most part, but would do everything he could to tease and taunt her.

"Just for this mission, we need to keep our heads in the game," she said bluntly. "I won't jeopardize the mission for a good fuck, Kakashi. Okay?"

"Whatever you say ma'am," he said with a smile.

"Let's pick up the pace, I want to be there before our contact arrives at the hotel," she smiled back and leapt to the trees.

Kakashi followed through and traveled beside her.

They moved at a good pace for several hours. Mostly in silence, but occasionally Kakashi would ask a random detail about the objective, while trying to process and plan for the mission. Sakura gladly shared the information that she knew and her ideas about it while they traveled. Kakashi had some input but while they were equally matched in intelligence, it was in different areas of expertise.

They took a break every few hours to eat and rest for a few moments, stretching out their stiff muscles. Sakura was particularly sore—it had been a while since she raced out of the village at top speed.

They stopped again briefly just before the sun rose, each taking turns taking a power nap while the other stood guard.

Sakura noticed that Kakashi was on his best behaviour and restrained himself from the typical intimate touches that they had been sharing lately. Sadly, it made her somewhat regret establishing those rules for this mission—she missed the casual way his body was so attuned to hers. She especially missed his face, his grin and the way his mouth moved whenever he spoke. It was certainly the little things about him that she craved right now.

They packed up their small camp and moved out once more. They were making good time. The weather held out for them—it was neither too hot nor too cold and it wasn't raining.

It was dusk when they made it to the prearranged hotel and Sakura was looking forward to a relaxing shower before meeting up with their contact.

Being both frugal and practical, they decided it was best to share a room—while they didn't expect any assailants hunting them down, there was always safety in numbers. They threw down their packs, and eyed the bed greedily, both of them yearning to crawl in.

Sakura sighed as she dug into her pack and pulled out a roll of wards that she'd use to keep curious ears from hearing anything that they discussed while they stayed in this room.

"Why don't you jump into the shower Kakashi, and I'll set up the wards, then we can swap before our contact arrives," she suggested.

"Sounds good," he said as he started to take off all of his layers.

Sakura tried not to get distracted by a semi-naked Kakashi as he removed more and more of his clothing. However, after a while, she could no longer look away and rather than be shy about it, she turned and blatantly stared at him.

"See something you like there, Sakura?" he asked as he hooked a thumb into the front of his pants, and started to pull them down just a little.

Sakura rolled her eyes. "You know I like what I see, but while we're outside of Konoha, keep your sexy body to yourself, because you're not getting any," she replied dryly.

"You have made your position on that perfectly clear, and it's not my intention to make you break your word on that. I'm just over here getting ready for a shower, doing as my team leader instructed," he said in an innocent tone as he continued to tease her with his now low-hanging pants.

"Then your team leader suggests you head to the washroom to finish removing the rest of your clothes."

"Yes Ma'am," he saluted and sauntered into the washroom in just his pants.

With Kakashi finally out of the room—and no longer a visual distraction—she put up the protection and silencing wards, ensuring that they would be safe throughout their stay.

She heard the shower start and she had a hard time keeping her mind on the self imposed task, while picturing him naked and wet in the shower. She nearly had her mind back on track and focused when she started to hear him sing in the shower—she couldn't help the heat that spread to her cheeks. He had never done anything like this before, but he sure had a pretty singing voice.

Finishing up quickly, she went back to her bag and pulled out clothes to put on after she showered. She pulled out the dress and other items she planned on wearing for the formal party, hanging them up in the closet. She'd have to send the dress out tomorrow to get dry cleaned so that it'd be ready for the formal event.

Hearing the shower stop and the rattling of the shower curtain, she tried her best to stow away the smile on her face. Sakura turned her head to the washroom door as it opened and a billow of steam pushed its way out, quickly followed by a towel-clad Kakashi.

"It's all yours," he grinned at her. "I'll head out and grab some dinner for us, so don't rush on my account," he winked at her as he turned around and dropped his towel, showing off his muscular and perfect ass.

"Brat," Sakura said as she rolled her eyes and headed into the steamy washroom to wash off their travels.

The small room was inundated with his masculine scent—sweat, earth, cypress and pine and all him. She breathed it in deeply, relishing the calm that it brought her. Starting up the shower, she stripped down her clothes. She felt relaxed even here, in a place away from home, because of his presence.

One thing that she loved about hotels was that they always had an endless supply of hot water. Sakura moved to stand directly under the hot spray of water, thoroughly enjoying the feeling of her muscles relaxing in the warmth. She wasn't sure how long she was in the shower for, but when she heard the door open and a cool breeze flashed against her heated skin, it alerted her to Kakashi's presence.

"Are you sufficiently waterlogged yet?" he asked. He peeked his head into the shower, appreciating his view of Sakura's naked back.

"Almost," she sighed.

"I brought us some food and I believe our contact is on route to us. You should probably get out and put on some clothes. Wouldn't want to give our associate a show, now would we?" he teased.

"I'll be right out."

"Okay," he said, but didn't leave.

Sakura turned her head around to look at him. "Enjoying the show?"

"Most definitely," he replied hungrily. "You said I couldn't touch, but you didn't say anything about not looking."

"Get out, Kakashi. I'll be right there."

Kakashi hummed and left her alone. She rinsed her hair once more, turned off the shower and stepped out. She snagged a towel and dried off quickly before catching a chill. Wrapping the towel around her hair as she rubbed lotion into her skin and put on her clothes.

Her mind fluttered between sharing a room with Kakashi and their mission. She was curious to see what their contact was going to provide them with—while being even more curious about sharing a bed with Kakashi for the nights during this mission.

She really wanted to be able to keep her hands to herself, but she knew that it was going to be a trial—especially if he was going to continue to tease and taunt her, trying to encourage her to break her edict.

Sakura wanted nothing more than to jump him and christen every surface of this little hotel room, but the risk of distracting them from their purpose was too high. She was a professional in every sense of the word and becoming preoccupied with her mission partner was not why she was here.

_Maybe it wasn't the best choice to bring Kakashi on this mission after all,_ she thought. But when it came down to it, there was no one she trusted as much as him.

She pulled her mind back to the present and finished dressing. Pulling the towel from her hair, she ran her fingers through the wet strands as she stepped out into the main room where Kakashi was sitting in a chair dishing out their dinner. It looked like a few containers of soup, rice, and grilled meats. A simple but welcomed fare compared to the snacks they ate along the way.

"It's nothing special, but it's enough to tide us over until morning."

"Thanks, Kakashi, it's perfect," she said pleasantly as she moved next to him to take her share, and leaned against the desk. They barely paused to talk as they inhaled their food, both feeling ravenous from barely eating anything of substance in the past 24 hours.

Sakura looked over at the clock, knowing that it would only be a few more minutes before their Lightning contact made his or her appearance.

Kakashi was just about to put another piece of sauteed saury into his mouth when there was a knock at the door. He began to put down his chopsticks, but Sakura placed a hand on his shoulder.

"I got it, finish eating." She moved to the door, first looking out of the peephole, and then opening the door.

"Haruno-san?"

"Yes," she said wearily at first, knowing that you can never be too careful in enemy territory.

"I'm Ishikawa Hige. I'm your contact for this mission," he said politely.

"Yes, come in," she said as she opened the door widely enough to let him in. Their contact stepped into the small hotel room, and looked between the two Konoha shinobi. His eye landed on the other man in the room who was finishing up a morsel of food in his mouth. "This is my mission partner, Hatake Kakashi."

Hige's eyes widened in recognition. "The Rokudaime Hokage-sama?" he stuttered, thoroughly surprised that the retired Hokage came down to help with such a low key mission. The mask that covered the older man's face moved up and down as he finished chewing and swallowing. Hige thought that the quiet man looked innocent enough, but knew that looks could be deceiving—especially if this was in fact the legendary Copy-nin.

Kakashi continued to sit seemingly relaxed and carefree. "I'm retired now, and I'm just here as back up for Sakura. She's the primary on this mission. I am here to make sure that our best medic comes home safe and sound," he said in a tone that left little room for discussion.

Sakura wanted to roll her eyes at the posturing between the two men, but withheld from doing so. "What information do you have for us, Ishikawa-san?"

Somewhat startled out of his thoughts, Hige turned to Sakura, producing an envelope that contained all of the pertinent information they had on their suspect.

"Dr. Ichiro Sanada is our main suspect. Age 34; occupation: physician during the day and chemical pharmacologist in his free time. Graduated top of his class and apprenticed under some of the best civilian doctors in the world. He is unmarried and lives alone. From our investigation he isn't seeing anyone, since he spends most of his time working at the local hospital or in the lab. By all accounts, he seems to be an upstanding member of the community," Hige explained.

"If he's so well known in the community, how did he get mixed up in making chemical and biological weapons?"

"We're not entirely sure. We also don't know who his contacts are or how they met up. This is where we need you to conduct your investigation. We were hoping that you'd be able to determine the full details of how Dr. Sanada came to meet the rogue-nins," Hige said. "Who they are and why they have been wiping out small villages. We will also need you to come up with an antidote for all variations of the toxin that he created."

Sakura nodded her head understanding the severity of the situation. "Okay. Are there copies of the autopsy reports from the dead villagers? That information will be vital in coming up with an antitoxin," Sakura asked.

"Yes, we've included all of that in there, as well as other information regarding some of his previous studies and investigations. We also have collected tissue and fluid samples from the bodies, if you require to conduct your own examination. We can supply them whenever you want." Hige was doing his best to support the well-known med-nin in any way that he could think of.

"I appreciate that. I will let you know when I will need the samples. However, my examination will have to occur in my lab at the hospital back in Konoha, so please be ready to send everything there. Also, we will review the documents that you have given us and will come up with a plan to deal with the good doctor. We will contact you with updates of our investigations throughout our stay. If any additional information becomes available, you know where to find us," Sakura said, politely dismissing their guest. She needed time to review everything and come up with a plan for getting closer to the doctor. She started flipping through the documents that Hige had brought them, already getting absorbed with the details there.

Kakashi stood up and walked their contact out of the shared hotel room. He noticed that Sakura was already lost with her nose in the papers absorbing every detail they contained about their target.

Hige bowed deeply to the pair of Konoha shinobi before departing. "We are grateful that you are here to help us out with this issue. We are at your disposal if you require anything else," he said. He seemed to still be in awe that two high-caliber shinobi had come, and that he had met them.

"Thank you for your help. We'll be in contact," Kakashi said lazily. He escorted the man out, while glancing back at Sakura who was still deep in thought.

Kakashi locked the door and turned to talk to Sakura, but knowing that look on her face, she was too immersed to answer any questions he had. He decided to let her do her thing and review the notes, knowing that she would ask for help or opinions if she needed any. He cleaned up the mess from their dinner and brushed his teeth.

Doing the only thing that he could think of, he moved to the large bed, flopped down on it and pulled out Tactics to start reading.

Every once in a while he'd hear a 'huff' or a 'what? that can't be' and a continual chorus of flipping pages. He'd looked up and saw her intensely concentrating on the information before her, almost violently sorting through the pages as she looked for answers. It must have been close to 3 hours before she put them all down.

With a large exaggerated sigh, she turned to Kakashi and eyed him while he continued to sprawl out on the bed they were to share.

"Well, I've reviewed everything that they gave us, there's a lot of gaps in their knowledge that we'll have to fill in," Sakura sighed once more as she continued to think everything through. "It seems that our target is a genius when it comes to his job and research. Which is confusing though, since he seems to be a pillar of the community. So I'm very curious to find out how that happened," she hummed. "Hige has provided an outline of his daily schedule. I think that we should spend the next few days watching him from afar, finding out more about his day to day life before we begin to infiltrate his personal life. Do you agree?" Sakura asked somewhat hesitantly.

"This is your mission Sakura, regardless of my own experience, trust your own gut and do what you think will guarantee the results that our client wants," Kakashi said reassuringly.

"There's something that just doesn't seem right about all of this. If he's such an upstanding individual, then why is he suddenly dealing with crooks like that? How did he meet them? Especially those types? You don't usually run into them at the market."

"I'm sure we can figure it out. But for now, we need rest. We've been on the go for 42 hours, it's time to catch up on sleep so we can do a good job tomorrow," Kakashi intoned sleepily.

Standing up briefly, he turned his back towards Sakura and pulled down his mask as he slipped off his tight undershirt.

"Ahhh, Kakashi, what are you doing?" Sakura called out to him, her voice both stuttering and frank.

"Getting ready for bed, what does it look like?" Kakashi said, trying to act innocently.

"I told you that we're not having sex while on this mission," Sakura said bluntly.

"I understood and accepted your terms, but I'm just getting ready for bed. Relax, I'll keep my boxers on for you," he smiled. He pushed his pants down off of his legs and placed them on the chair beside the bed.

He looked over his shoulder to see if Sakura was watching him, and she was. She seemed to be concentrating very hard on him, with her mouth slightly hanging open. He knew and enjoyed the effect he had on her. It certainly made an old man like him happy that he can still spark that lust in her eyes.

He pulled back the covers enough to slip in and pulled the sheets just up to his waist, leaving his chest bare to the cool air. Lacing his fingers behind his head, he laid back and closed his eyes.

Kakashi was trying to mentally place a finger on the emotions he was struggling with—spending the night with Sakura without having sex was a test of his own ability to control his constant need for her. It would be a trial to get through the next two weeks, and he knew that there were going to be a few cold showers in his future. But it would be worth it.

"You better keep your hands to yourself Kakashi. I was serious about that," Sakura warned.

"Do you want me to sleep on the couch? Would that make you feel more comfortable?" Kakashi asked seriously, sitting up and eyeing her.

Sakura huffed. "No, of course not. I trust you."

"Then stop warning me and come to bed. I'll stick to my side, promise." Kakashi patted the bed, trying to entice her to crawl in.

"Fine, I'll be there in a moment. I just need to get ready," she replied distractedly.

Kakashi simply hummed in response and tried to even out his breathing, waiting for her to join him.

Without opening his eyes, he heard her move around the room, putting things away, washing her hands and brushing her teeth. Then one flick after another the lights in the room shut off, until all that was left was the light on her side of the bed.

He felt the bed dip under her weight as she crawled in. Her scent enveloped him as she settled beside him. He held perfectly still as she settled between the sheets and so close to him.

"Good night, Kakashi," she murmured, her voice muffled since her face was pointing away from him.

"G'night Sakura." Once more, Kakashi closed his eyes, trying to fall asleep. However, he couldn't until he heard her breathing finally even out.

Hopefully his mind and body would allow him to actually sleep while sharing a bed with Sakura—otherwise it was going to be a long couple of weeks.

* * *

Sakura slowly woke and returned to the land of the living. She felt both rested and restless—which was probably caused by the unfamiliar bed and pillow. She shifted her head, trying to snuggle further into the pillow when she noticed that the pillow was not the downy softness that she expected.

"Sorry I'm not as soft and cuddly as the pillow," the rumbling voice came.

Her eyes shot open and came face to face with Kakashi's bare chest, finding that her hand had been unknowingly drawing circles on his abs, mindlessly enjoying the feeling of his hot skin under her fingertips.

"Ugh..." she uttered, as she pulled her head back to stare at him.

"As you can see, I'm still in the same spot where I fell asleep, and it was you who migrated to my side of the bed," Kakashi remarked mirthfully.

Sakura made a noise between a snort and a moan and flopped back onto her side of the bed. Kakashi shifted to his side and stared at her intently for a few moments.

"Since you broke first, does that mean I get a prize?" he asked, his voice more husky than he intended.

"No Kakashi. No sex. Not until we're home in Konoha."

"Yeah, I thought you might say that. Then I guess it's time to get up and brave the day," he sighed dramatically as he pulled the sheets off and walked to the washroom.

Sakura matched his theatrical sigh and nearly smacked herself in the head. Abstaining from sex during this mission was meant to help them focus, and so far all she could think about was what he was doing behind that closed door.

Refusing to fall victim to her emotions and lust, she focused on what was to happen today.

The best plan of action for them was to watch their target for several days before attempting to make contact. Using henges to get closer to him and see what the good doctor was hiding. Everyone had secrets—some secrets would be inconsequential for the sake of the mission while other secrets could be a catalyst for everything else. It was up to them to find everything out and sort through the unknown.

Kakashi reappeared from the washroom looking freshly showered and ready to start the day. "So what's the plan for the day?" he asked as he started pulling on civilian-styled clothes. She watched him, noticing that even though he was dressed as a civilian, no one would ever think that he was JUST a civilian. He held himself like a man ready for battle and ready for anything.

"Yes, I have a plan in mind. I've gone through all of the notes that Hige brought us and it seems that the good doctor keeps to a fairly strict routine. So as long as he doesn't deviate from his daily routine, I know where he is going to be at any time of the day. I believe that the first few days should be spent investigating him from a distance, then we can slowly work our way to getting closer and closer to the target," she explained.

"Makes sense," he said as he tied a scarf loosely around his neck. "Where do we start?"

* * *

Sakura and Kakashi spent the next three days watching Dr. Sanada's every move. They alternated throughout the day, and Kakashi's ninken monitored their target throughout the night. The good doctor rarely diverged from his day to day habits; stopped at the same coffee shop on his way to work, ate at the same place for lunch and kept to his extra shifts at the lab. It was so repetitive, it was boring.

By the fourth day, they decided to step up their investigation by casting various henges and sitting at the table beside the doctor during either his coffee break or his lunch hour. They tried to overhear any conversations that he had on his phone or with any visitors. But nothing out of the norm was determined during those observations either.

After the sixth day of tracking the target's every movement and succeeding in switching out their sentry position with the ninken, they went back to their shared hotel room, tired of the monotonous and tedious pace that the mission took.

Sakura flopped on the bed and groaned loudly. "What I wouldn't give for a quick and dirty battle. One where I can get my hands dirty and work up a good sweat," she ranted.

Kakashi stood near the doorway, staring at his teammate and lover. "You don't need a good battle—you need a good fuck," Kakashi murmured under his breath.

"Excuse me?"

Kakashi just stared at her blandly, not answering her in case she chose to get violent. "I'm going to have a shower," he said as he walked into the washroom and turned on the shower immediately.

Sakura stared at his back as he walked away. She knew he had a shower first thing in the morning, and they hadn't done anything to work up a sweat. It puzzled her why he suddenly needed another shower. Not knowing what else to do, she got up and checked on him.

With the water running loudly, she didn't bother to knock on the door, knowing that he'd probably ignore her. When she entered the small room, it was already filled with a thick steam. It reminded her of when she entered his bathroom all those weeks ago when she first came upon him lounging in his bathtub. That was when the games started, and since then she was floored by the change between them. Never would she have thought that one day she'd be in love with the man she was sleeping with.

"Kakashi?" she called out hesitantly. She wasn't sure what she expected of him. Perhaps she shouldn't have asked him to be her backup on this mission seeing that he was acting the way he was.

"Yes, Sakura?" he asked, his voice sounding tired and somewhat occupied.

"Are you okay?" She asked not really knowing if she wanted to hear the answer. Unable to resist, she poked her head behind the curtain.

He had both hands placed against the far wall, and his head was under the full stream of the water. Sakura watched the water trickle down his muscular back, over his perfect ass and down his powerful legs. He briefly turned and gave her a jaded look. The look on his face quickly turned from tired to heated.

Kakashi gave her a hungry look as he pushed off the wall and turned around. When he finished turning and faced her head on, she drew in a deep breath.

He stood before her fully erect and proud, with water still streaming down his body. Sakura couldn't help the bolt of lust that shot through her. She subconsciously parted her lips and ran her tongue across them, hungry for the sight before her.

"Sakura, either get in here with me, let me bury myself in you and fuck you senseless, or leave so I can jerk off to thoughts of you," he said dryly as he lower his hand to his hard cock and started slowly grazing his hand up and down his length, paying special attention to the slit on the head.

"I—ah... I... fuck Kakashi," she exclaimed fiercely. She reached up, running her hand up from her collarbone to her neck and grasped her neck, wishing it was his hand instead. "I can't. Not while we're here. We can't—fuck—" she huffed as she turned and left the bathroom, slamming the door behind her in thorough frustration.

She almost left the hotel room, but she changed her mind at the last second, knowing that it wasn't safe to leave him, even though he was more than capable of taking care of himself—she couldn't leave her partner like that. It just wasn't right. For all the wrong that it was, she didn't halt her mind as she kept the visions of a naked Kakashi in the forefront of her mind. She didn't stop herself as she laid down in the middle of their shared bed and slipped a hand beneath her pants, past her panties and to her pearl of pleasure.

One finger dipped lower, and she wasn't surprised to find herself soaking through her underwear. She shuddered as she traced her finger around her clit, already so close to an orgasm. It had been a week since they'd had sex and withholding was just about killing her. Or potentially making her crazy and overwhelmed with lust—it was obviously having the same effect on Kakashi.

Sakura didn't want to shake the image of Kakashi gripping himself while she was watching. Thinking of him with one hand around his cock, while he imagined her—she didn't bother to try to stop herself from masturbating to him touching himself to thoughts of her. Tonight, it would be as good as she was going to get.

Moving one finger over and over on her hypersensitive clit, it wasn't long before her orgasm ripped through her. Throwing her head back and arching her body as her lower half released. She heard the loudest groan and a rough 'fuck' uttered from the direction of the bathroom. Hearing Kakashi reach his own orgasm seconds after she did made her shudder again, knowing that he probably got off from smelling her own release.

So much for keeping their head straight during this mission. Hearing his moan only made her want more. So she quickly dipped two fingers into her slick core and pressed upwards, massaging her g-spot, trying to bring herself to peak once more before he came out of the washroom. With just a few moments of fingering herself, her body grew taut once again. Her head fell back in ecstasy as another wave of pleasure ran through her—wave after wave. It devastated her. Unable to string together any coherent thoughts, she rode out the spasms wreaking havoc on her body, ignorant to everything around her.

"And that's supposed to help me get control of my body, how?" Kakashi murmured from beside her. She hadn't even noticed him approach her.

Embarrassed, she pulled her hand out of her pants, fingers slick with her own juices. Her body was still quaking from two back-to-back orgasms, as she stared up into his dark eyes. She was about to bolt to the washroom when he stopped her by taking her hand and slipped the two drenched fingers into his mouth. His tongue swirled around the digits, making sure that every drop of her nectar was devoured.

"Delicious, as always," Kakashi whispered, his voice deep and husky.

"Kakashi, I said no sex," Sakura breathed, trying to be irritated, but failing as she got turned on more and more with every second he held her gaze.

"Does this look like sex? Because it isn't. And if you're still confused, I'll gladly show you the difference between me sucking your fingers and me fucking you senseless," he breathed as his lips ghosted over her fingers again. "Please let me show you," he begged, laving her fingers with attention.

"Not tonight, Kakashi," she sighed. "I need a shower." She got up and moved past him—walking slowly and slightly awkwardly as her panties were filled with her release.

By the time Sakura had closed the door behind her, she regretted asking him to come on this mission. But what she regretted more was her edict of no sex. She sighed to herself, unsure of what she should do except shower and get herself cleaned up.

* * *

Kakashi watched as Sakura left the washroom in a huff. She was so close and yet, he wanted to keep to his word and not have sex with her while they were out on this mission. But damn her for putting this restriction on their physical relationship. Spending the past 7 nights in bed with her, often waking up with a morning wood—he was just about at his limit, and there was still another week left.

Today while at the coffee shop Sakura had crossed her legs, and unknowingly brushed her leg against his calf. At first it seems to be a mistake and an innocent one at that, but as they listened to their target drone on about the upcoming gala dinner being put on for the medical community, the teasing rub continued. She seemed oblivious that she was even doing it, but Kakashi was quickly losing control of his thoughts.

He wanted those legs over his shoulders as he ate her out, or better yet, as he pounded into her at a savage pace—a pace meant to bring them both immediate release.

So when they finally returned to their hotel room after being on edge all day, he couldn't stand it any longer and he needed another shower. But this time it would be hot since he didn't want to subdue his raging erection, but milk it out to a sweet surrender.

The hot water coated his tense body, but did not relax it. He turned once more to face the oncoming stream of hot water, bending his head so that it hit his shoulders first and ran down the rest of his body. He kept hold of his erection in a firm grasp while his other hand rested against the cold tile, helping him steady himself.

He began to slowly pump up and down, thinking of Sakura—on her knees, or bent over or with one of those legs in a near split and hanging over his shoulder as he pounded into her. He glided his hand over the head of his cock, smearing the precum down the shaft, making his movement easier.

It was frustrating knowing it was his own hand and not hers, but it greatly turned him on knowing that she knew he was masturbating to thoughts of her right now. And judging by the scent that came from the other room, she was aroused too. She must be playing with herself as well—it was the only explanation for the strength of her arousal wafting into the washroom.

He groaned as her scent became stronger, but only pumped his hand faster seeking the climax that he so desperately needed. When he heard her moan and could smell her scent getting so heady, he nearly passed out over it. It was the smell of her and the sounds she was making that finally did him in.

He groaned out a 'fuck' and quickened his tempo thinking about the wet release that he knew was dripping out of his partner. He was nearly driven to the edge of jumping out just so that he could catch her in her passionate release. Loving how she looked when she finally gave into pleasure, especially if it was pleasure that he had given her. There was something so enthralling about the way she looked when her body contorted in bliss.

Slowing his pumping down, milking out the rest of his climax, he quickly rinsed up once more, washing his essence off his body. He tried to calm his breathing as he slowly came down from his orgasm, he wanted nothing more than to crawl into bed and fall asleep. Especially since the other thing he wanted to do was impossible at the moment.

Turning off the shower and stepping out, he was surprised when he was still inundated by the scent of Sakura's arousal, not understanding why it was still so strong. Pulling on the pair of boxers he was going to sleep in, he brushed his teeth and quickly headed out into the main room.

When he saw that her hand was sunk deep between her legs he stopped exactly where he was. Watching her finish and quietly moan out syllables that sounded similar enough to his name, he couldn't stand still anymore. Her body arched as she reached her orgasm and he silently moved to the side of the bed and watched her shudder in pleasure. He held his breath, not wanting to interrupt her until she fully came down from her high.

When her breath finally shifted to a more normal pace, he finally spoke up. "And that's supposed to help me get control of my body, how?" he murmured from right beside her.

He saw how flushed with embarrassment she was from being caught touching herself to the sounds and thoughts of him. She pulled her hand out of her pants, and he immediately noticed that her two middle fingers were wrinkled and coated with a sheen of moisture that reflected the dim light. Unable to help himself, and to her surprise, he grabbed her hand and brought it to his lips, slipping both of her slick digits into his mouth at once. Savoring her taste he shifted his tongue around her fingers and sucked hard.

Pulling them out slightly, he lapped at them, making sure that he got every drop off. "Delicious, as always," he whispered, his voice deep and husky.

"Kakashi, I said no sex," Sakura breathed out. But he could tell that it wasn't really irritation in her voice, but lust for him.

He kept his grip tight on her hand, unwilling to let her go as he continue to lick her fingers clean. "Does this look like sex? Because it isn't. And if you're still confused, I'll gladly show you the difference between me sucking your fingers and me fucking you senseless," he breathed as his lips ghosted over her fingers again. "Please let me show you," he begged, laving her fingers with attention. He was so desperate to show her how much he wanted to slip inside her. Rules be damned.

"Not tonight, Kakashi," she sighed. "I need a shower." She slowly got up and walked past him—he could almost hear how much her underwear was drenched with her own juices.

Kakashi groaned in frustration and took her place on the bed, lavishing in her scent and warmth that remained there. He knew it wasn't going to help with his morning wood, but he was completely addicted to her. He rolled until his face was on her pillow and inhaled her alluring fragrance. Musky but feminine—and all too enticing. Thankfully it was far too soon for him to get hard again after his shower episode.

* * *

I hope you enjoyed that! Hehehehe ^_^ Thank you again! Please leave me a review because they really do make my day ^_~


	16. Something Impulsive

Thank you so much to everyone who has reviewed this! I really to love and appreciate every single review! I reread all of them all of the time!

I promise this story isn't abandoned. In fact I'm almost done writing it all. All chapters should be posted by xmas. At least that's my goal! 

Thank you sooo much to my lovely beta, **Sarcastic-Mommy**! I'm so grateful for your help! And thank you to **Alien** who is a constant support to me! I'm so lucky that you let me bug you all the time! 

Enjoy!

* * *

To say that Sakura had a restless sleep that night would be an understatement. After showering away the evidence of her arousal, she couldn't bring herself to join Kakashi in bed. If she did, she was sure that she would end up giving in and breaking her own rule because of how much she wanted to be close and intimate with him. So instead, Sakura moved to the couch and spent the rest of her night thinking about them and whatever it was going on between them.

It was still painfully obvious to herself that she was completely in love with him. However, she was sure it was altogether one sided.

And sure, the sex was mind blowing, but now she was struggling to keep up the charade of this being _just_ sex. She still didn't regret asking him to be her second on this mission, but she was confused and wasn't sure how to handle being near him without wanting to touch him.

Sleeping away from Kakashi was the only solution she could think of at this point. Sakura was determined to complete the mission successfully and without any complications. Her pride as a Konoha kunoichi was staked on it.

However, last night was problematic.

While she wasn't opposed to some things being complicated, she didn't want personal issues getting in the way of her completing this mission.

So she chose the couch and slept alone—and dreamt of Kakashi.

Her unconscious mind plagued her with memories of his mouth, his hands and his body as he made love to her. Flashes of his grin and his dark eyes as he moved with her, in her, made her moan out in her sleep. She knew that she was dreaming, but she wasn't about to wake herself from it. Sakura was enjoying it too much.

Her dream Kakashi was kissing down her body when his voice clearly called out her name.

"Sakura," came his low and raspy voice.

Being too caught up in her dream she did her best to ignore it, however it wouldn't stop.

"Sakura, wake up. It's morning," came his voice once more. This time she was shaken awake.

Tiredly, she opened her eyes to see the man of her dreams staring down at her. She could tell that he looked more tired than usual and perhaps a little rueful.

Slowly, she blinked and allowed her eyes to adjust to the morning light.

Kakashi knelt down and stared at her as she fluttered her eyes while stretching and yawning. When he had found himself in bed alone in the morning, he was worried at first. However, as soon as he sat up and saw her asleep on the couch, he knew he had pushed things too far.

When he approached her, he noticed she was squirming around and mumbling under her breath. He figured out very quickly what was happening and felt bad for waking her, but he wanted to talk before they began their day.

Scratching the back of his head, he tried to think of the right words to start with. He heaved a heavy sigh when he caught her staring up at him expectantly—talking about emotions was not what he excelled at.

"Morning, Sakura... I'm, uh... I'm sorry for making you uncomfortable last night. You were clear at the beginning of this mission about the boundaries. But you're not exactly the easiest woman to resist. I'm no good at this, but, I'm still sorry," he finished feebly. Kakashi figured that he owed her an apology, especially since he had been knowingly teasing her throughout most of their mission, but he didn't know how to deal with this situation or how to make things right between them.

Sakura sat up and fussed with her bedhead and sighed. "It's not entirely your fault, Kakashi. We're both adults and responsible for the situation." She paused and gave him a serious look. "And I wasn't uncomfortable at any point. I'm more angry at myself for forcing this situation on us. I'm just as frustrated as you are, because I want you too, and you're not exactly helping you know. But for now, we should focus on work. When we get back home, we should perhaps have a conversation about whatever this is between us."

Once more, Kakashi reached to the back of his head and gripped his neck, trying to relieve the building tension. "You're probably right. We're overdue for a talk." He already started feeling anxious about that future prospect, but thankfully he was trained to push those feelings down and away for a later date.

"Okay, well until then, let's focus on the mission," Sakura said tiredly. "We've got three more days of recon before the banquet dinner. Let's make the most of it."

"Lets," he said determinedly as he extended his hand to help her off the couch. He wouldn't let her down. Kakashi knew that as easy as this mission was, it deserved his full attention and as team leader, Sakura warranted his respect.

He'd just have to stow his need for her until they were back in Konoha. Kakashi could only hope that he could subdue his desires until then.

* * *

They spent the next three days getting closer and closer to the good Doctor—watching his every move. A few things became abundantly clear about their target: he was brilliant from a professional standpoint, but naive and inept when it came to any type of social interactions and trusting the right, or in this case, the _wrong_ people. He was in way over his head and he didn't even know it.

With time, Sakura and Kakashi were able to determine that Dr. Sanada had no idea what he was doing. He sadly didn't know what type of havoc he was creating in his lab, and it was all because he was being paid by a client to create something new.

Even though they had determined what was happening, they still didn't know exactly what he was making, or why the Doctor's client had paid him to make it. The only way to find out was to pump the guy for information, or get samples. Their mission had been specific enough in making sure that their target never knew that he was under investigation, so in some ways, their viable options were extremely limited.

It was the mid afternoon of the day of the banquet dinner, and Kakashi and Sakura sat in their hotel room eating lunch and discussing their plans for the evening. Things had to be thoroughly planned out and rehearsed, since there was no room for error.

"So once more: you get close to him, seduce him. Get his office keys and fob and slip them to me. I get a sample of vials from his office, and then return his keys to you while you keep him... well, occupied," Kakashi reiterated to Sakura as she sipped on some miso broth.

"Yep! Short and sweet. He won't even know what's happening until we're long gone." Sakura continued to eat the late lunch while confirming the plans.

"And I'll be waiter, thief and back up for you?" he asked teasingly.

"While I appreciate your offer for back up, he's just one civilian doctor with no special abilities. So I'm sure I'll be able to handle anything he'll do. Don't worry so much Kakashi, I got this." Sakura winked at him as he slipped another bite of food into his mouth.

Kakashi nodded. He tried his best to not show any emotions when they spoke so casually about Sakura seducing another man. He wasn't jealous, but he could honestly say—to himself at least—that he was unhappy with the idea of another man's hands on Sakura's body. Bringing her pleasure, feeling her strong pulse beating as she came. Sakura was just someone he didn't want to share with anyone else.

Ever.

But he kept his mouth shut. It didn't seem to phase Sakura when she spoke about it. It was as if she was talking about something as commonplace as the weather.

So no matter how much it bothered him, he wasn't going to comment.

"Kakashi? You've gone quiet. Have you thought of something that I'm missing?" Sakura inquired between bites.

Kakashi shook his head to stop his mind from spiraling out of control. "No. I think you've covered everything. I should probably start getting ready for my shift and make sure everything is in place for you. I'll reserve a room at the hotel and pass the key during the party."

"Sounds good. And remember, I'll have brown hair for the evening—my natural colour stands out too much—but I'll be keeping my eye color. I'm sure you'll have no problem finding me," she said as she grinned at him.

"I'll be fine," he mumbled. "Thanks for lunch. I'll see you in a few hours, I guess." Kakashi placed his food carton in the garbage and left their hotel room without looking back.

Sakura could tell that something was bugging Kakashi, and she could take a guess at what it was, but she couldn't let it affect her tonight. She had a job to do, and she was going to succeed at it, no matter what. This was the most important moment of this mission and she wasn't going to mess it up because of his sour mood.

Knowing that she only had a few hours before she had to get to the party, she figured it was time to start getting ready. This wasn't going to be the typical night out. She needed to look stunning. Hot enough to be able to walk up to any man and command his attention with a single look.

Sakura knew that her confidence would have to be overflowing to go about picking up the good Doctor. After a week of watching him, she could tell that he preferred others to be in control. She had watched him fumbling in an attempt at flirting with a woman in a cafe, and it hadn't ended in his favour. So she'd be the one making all the moves tonight and seducing the target.

Taking her time in the shower, she washed her hair, letting the conditioner set while she shaved her legs and took care of other delicate areas as well. She wanted to be neat for this evening, and she didn't want to leave anything to chance.

Already formulating a plan for the sexual segment of the evening, Sakura was sure that she could pull this off without ever touching the man once she brought him to the hotel room. Being that he was only a civilian, he was likely very susceptible to genjustu, so she was lucky that she wasn't going to have to actually sleep with him. However, she still needed to look, smell and feel the part of seductress.

After finishing her shower, she jumped out and wrapped a towel around her body as she puttered in the bathroom, applying creams and makeup, and pampering herself for the evening. She had already donned the henge, switching her hair from her natural pink to a deep and lush brown. Sakura kept the length and style, knowing that she could make it look just right with the dress she'd be wearing for the evening. It was a little black dress that she had borrowed from Ino. Much more racy than she was used to, but it was perfect for seduction.

She had to admit that she was eager to see Kakashi's reaction tonight. She was anticipating the moment he'd lay his eyes on her at the party. She wanted to see his face, hoping that he'd pause in his work for a brief moment to ogle her. Making a man like Kakashi hesitate in his duties was a powerful feeling.

Deciding to keep her hair down, she styled it so that her hair fell in waves down her back. Her makeup was dark and alluring, making sure to bring out her green eyes. Taking a look at the clock, she was surprised at how much time had passed since Kakashi had left.

She needed to put the final touches on and then leave. Feeling a brief flash of nerves in her stomach, she took a deep breath. This was all a part of the job. And with Kakashi's support, she knew that she could handle this and anything else that could come her way. Finishing getting ready, she left the room after locking up.

Thankfully the banquet dinner was being hosted in a larger hotel around the corner. It was all very convenient, especially since she was in heels that added almost three inches to her height.

Sakura had to admit, she looked stunning all dressed up like this. A little bit of pampering went a long way.

Entering the hotel, she was directed to the large banquet hall, where she could already hear the hum of the chatter from the hundreds of attendants.

Another time, with another purpose, she probably would have enjoyed the meshing of minds in her field. It wasn't too often medics of the shinobi world would gather like this. They were all too secretive about their crafts and they would rarely share their knowledge willingly. Maybe next year she could come as herself, and enjoy the intellectual company of like minded people.

Tonight though, she had a purpose.

Entering the large room, she paused and looked around. It was filled with men in tuxedos and women in all styles of dresses, and all of them looking exquisite. It would have been overwhelming if she hadn't been expecting it.

Sakura was honestly curious when Kakashi would make an appearance—she definitely wanted to show herself off to him. Maybe even tease him a little.

The idea brought a smile to her face and a thrill raced through her body. She would love to be able to dress up like this for his pleasure one day.

And that was when she noticed him.

* * *

With his henge in place, that changed his hair to black, softened his facial features and removed the intimidating scar across his eye, Kakashi made his way around the banquet hall. In one hand, he balanced a tray with several full drinks and the other had a towel across his arm, in typical butler fashion.

It wasn't one of his favourite covers he ever donned for a mission, but at least it wasn't the worst one either. That would be reserved for when he was the pool boy for a wealthy and bored woman who was probably the most self-centered and shallow bitch he had ever met. Only a significant amount of alcohol helped him get over that mission.

Here at least, he was just treated with indifference or as if he didn't exist at all, which worked well for him. It allowed him to observe the comings and goings of any suspicious people. And of course, he got to keep an eye out for Sakura's arrival as well. Kakashi was greatly looking forward to the conclusion of this mission. The end of this duty meant the end of his abstinence and going back to Sakura's bed.

He had already spent a significant amount of time planning their first night back in Konoha. Kakashi could already picture the way her face would contort in pleasure as he brought her to peak after peak, unrelenting in his pursuits.

And as if by summoning technique, she appeared.

She was a vision, stopping him in his tracks and taking his breath away.

Even with dark brown hair, it was impossible to miss her. Sakura wore a little black dress that had a deep V neck that dipped low enough to attract lustful stares from the men and jealous glances from the women. Kakashi could see the round curve of each breast clearly out on display—how he missed the indulgence when his mouth was allowed to follow that curve. When she walked towards the bar, his eyes caught the back of her dress—or lack thereof. There was no back, only a gathering of lacy material just above the curve of her ass with lace barely covering her sides and front. And if that wasn't enough to get Kakashi's blood flowing hot, the solid looking skirt had high slits that easily went up high on both of her thighs, giving him a peak of the black lace thigh-highs she had wrapped around each leg.

What caught his attention the most, were her lips. Plump and soft and pink. How he longed to kiss them until they were a deeper colour. He missed her moans when he would capture her pliant lips between his teeth and lightly bite them.

His mouth watered as his eyes followed her. So caught up in the way she looked, he didn't notice how close he was to one of the other waitstaff as he bumped into them, causing their tray of empty glasses to tip. The shattering of glass brought his attention back to his duty, and a mix of irritation and self-reproach filtered through him.

The simple act of her walking by made him lose concentration and draw attention to himself. Even Sakura turned around to see what the commotion was. Throwing a brief but radiant smile his way, she turned around and continued to the bar.

Kakashi noticed that he wasn't the only one staring at her. She had quickly gained the attention of many men and even the lustful stares of a few women.

Debating when would be the best time to approach Sakura before she engaged the target, since he still needed to slip her the room key, he realised he wanted to and needed to get close to her, close enough so he could smell her.

Speaking of their target, Kakashi spotted the good Doctor's eyes following Sakura with his glass halfway to his mouth. It seemed that Sakura wasn't going to have too much trouble gaining his attention.

Quickly apologizing to the attendants around him, Kakashi went about cleaning up the mess he made and continued with his job. He needed to keep his senses keen with the number of people here. While he didn't expect any trouble from other people, it was important to stay focused.

It was his experience that taught him that things could quickly go wrong for no reason.

Sakura kept busy, sipping at her drink while surveying the hall. Several men had already approached her, making advances, but she shot them down quickly, making herself still seem available.

As the event progressed, Kakashi noticed her eyes making first contact with their target—they widened as she looked him up and down. While keeping her eyes concentrated on the Doctor, Sakura bit her lip and shifted in her seat a little, while rubbing her thighs together and bringing her drink to her lips.

It was all the signs he was used to seeing when she was turned on by him.

Kakashi couldn't help but hold the serving tray a little tighter. He had figured that he was going to have a harder time keeping his emotions in check tonight , but he didn't think it would start so soon after she arrived.

He honestly didn't think he'd have such a strong reaction to her as he did. But if he was being honest with himself, he never thought he'd feel anything as strongly as he did when he was with her. She had definitely gotten under his skin in all the best and worst possible ways.

And now... here she was, attracting another man.

Kakashi didn't want to think too hard about what was likely to happen tonight. Since it was all just a part of the job. Whether it was to obtain information through the elimination of targets or the seduction of informants, shinobi sold their bodies for the use of their village.

In essence, Sakura was just doing her job.

Kakashi was to do the same.

He wasn't likely to get a better chance to approach her in order to give her the hotel key and stand next to her. Making sure he refilled his tray with empty glasses before turning and making his way towards her. He continued watching her every move as she sipped at her champagne. Without making it obvious that he wanted to rush to her side, he finally made his way over to her.

Taking in a deep breath, he could literally smell how sexy and ready she was. He could smell the creams she used on her skin to make it soft, the shampoo and conditioner that lightly perfumed her hair, and the light scent of arousal that she was emanating. Kakashi couldn't help but lust after her. How he wanted to take her back to their shitty hotel room, slowly peel her dress off of her and claim her as his own.

Kakashi stood beside her and ordered fresh glasses of champagne to fill his tray. He subtly placed his hand on the bar beside her with a keycard hidden under his palm.

"Here's your key. Room 908," he whispered under his breath. "Looks like you dressed the part well enough that you could have any man here."

Ignoring his off-handed comment, Sakura looked around the room carefully, allowing her eyes to briefly rest on the profile of their target. "He certainly looks so much more handsome in a tuxedo than in his other outfits. This should be easy and maybe even an enjoyable evening," Sakura marveled as she took another sip of her drink. "When you return with his keys, leave them outside the room, on the floor, then flare your chakra to let me know you've completed your side of things."

Once the bartender replenished his tray with full drinks, Kakashi nodded and moved away. He felt a sickness to his stomach that he wasn't used to. It wasn't easy to hear how attractive she thought the target looked. She was supposed to be repelled by the man, not interested in him. Hearing that Sakura was going to enjoy sleeping with another man made his stomach turn and twist. He wanted this evening over and he was regretting coming on this mission now more than ever.

Kakashi knew that his emotions were getting the best of him, but it was like they had a mind of their own. He knew he had to try to rein in his fervour before he did something stupid.

He just had to focus on his task. If he could remain focused, the night would be over soon enough. He only had to wait and watch and do his part.

Moving around the hall, he continued to serve drinks to the other occupants while observing Sakura and the Doctor from all angles. Kakashi watched them closely and paid attention to anyone who was engrossed in the pair as well. There were certainly many other men interested in Sakura, all of whom were waiting for her to push away this man too. She was too gorgeous to be alone.

While doing one of his many rounds offering drinks, Kakashi felt a prickle at the back of his neck as he felt a familiar chakra enter the hall. He knew it wasn't Sakura's, but it was someone else he had come across before. However, throughout the evening, he hadn't seen anyone he recognized, it may be that they were disguised with a henge as well. If there was another player in the game it could only cause complications. He stopped in his tracks and carefully sent out a minuscule pulse of chakra, attempting to see where and who the familiar presence was. Kakashi was sure he knew this signature; sure that it was someone from Konoha.

Looking around the room with sharp eyes, Kakashi took account of each face that he could see. None were friendly. But none were familiar.

Circling the area again, the chakra signature began to become clearer and stronger. He's felt this presence recently—even in the past few weeks. Could it be his ANBU guard detail? He had thought that they had been disbanded when he left the village.

Or perhaps something more sinister.

Could this be the man that was targeting him? The man that had set up the ambush on Genma, Tenzo and himself? The man that nearly killed his friends. The man that almost had him killed.

Just as Kakashi was honing in on the presence, out of the corner of his eye, he saw the good Doctor standing beside Sakura with a large smile on his face. Sakura smiled back and then was reaching up to whisper something in his ear. It made the Doctor blush and laugh shyly while nodding his head.

Once more, Kakashi couldn't take his eyes off of the pair, so much so, that his pausing meant that he lost his trace on the chakra signature. He clenched his jaw as he did one more survey on the room.

It was gone.

They were gone. Back into the shadows, gone to haunt him another day.

Missing his opportunity with the suspicious but familiar chakra, Kakashi refocused his concentration on Sakura and their target. She was leaning into him with her hands on his chest as she continued to whisper to him. Kakashi could only imagine the dirty things she was saying, things that in the past, she would only say to him. Personal things. Things describing the way she liked to be taken, the way she liked his hands on her, or the eager way she liked to lick his cock.

Feeling his blunt nails embedding themselves into his palm, woke him up. Nothing good could come from his mind wandering down that path. Doing his best to remind himself that she was only doing this for the mission, he continued to do his job. Putting up with the Doctor's hands wandering down her sides to cup her ass while pulling her into him was all a part of the plan. As were the kisses he pressed along her bare neck and shoulders while laughing as she encouraged him with her salacious words.

All it took was a few more words from her and he was completely ensnared by her. A few more whispered words and he was nodding hungrily while gripping her hips tightly. It seemed that they weren't about to wait for the presentations that were planned for the doctors.

The pair finished their drinks in a rush, then Sakura took him by the hand and led him out of the main hall, towards the elevators.

Since she still hadn't left the man's key and fob for Kakashi near the bar, which he needed in order to complete the final phase of the mission, Kakashi was forced to follow them and watch while keeping his distance. The doctor was easily a head taller than Sakura, but it was she who was leading their entanglement. It was her who pushed him against the wall beside the elevator while they waited for the doors to open. She let him grope her and kiss her mouth.

And Sakura hungrily ate it up.

Kakashi couldn't stop the anger building up within him and had difficulties in withholding it when he witnessed her kissing another man, even though he knew what was coming next. That was going to be when he would be pushed too far at the thought of her enjoying sex with their target.

These thoughts were thoroughly fucking his already agitated and fragile mind. How would he be okay with this? How could the pair of them get over her sleeping with another man while he watched?

How could he stand by while the woman he loved shared herself with someone else?

The woman he loved.

Kakashi stopped moving—his heart jumping into his throat, his forehead and palms breaking out into beads of cold sweat, while he felt like the whole world went quiet.

He was in love.

First woman he ever loved, and she was about to—

He couldn't even bring himself to think it.

The ding of the elevator brought him out of his realization and into reality. Sakura and the Doctor moved into the empty elevator. Kakashi watched the doors shut and he felt like he was losing his chance.

Placing his tray on a serving cart beside him, he bolted for the stairs. He knew he could make his way to the 9th floor before the elevator did. He needed to get there first.

The only way he could end the night faster was to get the doctor's key and obtain the vials from his lab and then make it back to her. Then this horrible night could be over, and maybe they could put it all behind them.

Taking the stairs ten at a time, he leapt up each floor until he was on the 9th. As quietly as he could, he opened the door softly and waited for the elevator to arrive. The doors chimed once more, and without being able to see from his position, he heard the heavy doors roll open and the two occupants shuffled out.

Each little moan and noise they made was like a kunai to the gut—and he knew exactly what that was like.

They passed by the door to the stairwell, and their hands were all over each other—another knife to the gut. Kakashi heard a thump as they landed against the door of the hotel room. Sakura must have done something good because there was a long drawn-out moan from the Doctor before more shuffling and something small landed on the ground. Another masculine grunt and thud as they switched places allowing the Doctor to pin Sakura against the door.

"Open that door, so we can continue in privacy," he beseeched as the pull of a long zipper rippled through the air. Her feminine voice purred out a yes as a quiet 'beep' of the electronic lock was triggered. They stumbled inside the room and with a click of the lock, the door was shut—the final kunai to the gut.

The only thing Kakashi could do now was get the keys that Sakura dropped on the ground and go to the lab as quickly as he could. Perhaps that way, he could stop Sakura from performing the final act.

Dashing out from his hiding spot, he grabbed the key and fob from the floor and hurried back into the stairwell. Needing to get to the ground floor as quickly as he could, he vaulted down the narrow passageway between the handrails, allowing him to fall from the 9th to the ground floor in only a few seconds. Pushing his way through the exit door to the outside, he shot to the roofs and raced towards the Doctor's lab.

He pushed his own limits, trying to reach the location faster than he ever had before. Thankfully, thinking ahead, he had placed Pakkun outside the lab to watch and make sure everyone left. Spotting the pug on the ground, Kakashi quickly dropped beside the dog to receive the report.

"Kakashi, it seems that only the cleaner is in there at the moment—"

"Thanks," Kakashi interrupted and leapt away once more. He'd apologize for his curtness later, when time wasn't of the essence.

He stealthily entered the side door and kept his senses keen for anything that could possibly hinder his movements. Flying swiftly through the building, Kakashi looked for the entrance to the laboratory. Once finding it, he used the fob to gain access to the secured lab.

Taking a sealing scroll out of his vest, he opened it and laid it across an empty desk, then turned to the locked cabinets. Using the keys that Sakura obtained for him, he opened them up and started taking several vials out to inspect. Sakura had provided him a list of possible names and compounds to look for on the labels. It made his job significantly faster with that list, but he still took one of every kind he could find, just to be on the safe side. He wouldn't want to have to redo this night just because he grabbed the wrong vials.

Piling the vials on the opened scroll, Kakashi performed the hand gestures to seal the vials into the scroll. With a small poof of smoke, the bottles vanished and the scroll rolled up. Snatching it off the desk, he put the scroll back into his vest and rushed to leave.

Hopefully he could make it back in time to save the woman he loved from needlessly sleeping with their target.

* * *

By the time Sakura brought their target into the hotel room, she was feeling ready to be done with this mission. Sure, the target was easy on the eyes, but his hands were grabby and not gentle the way that she had become so accustomed to. Not to mention that he was a horrible kisser. She was thrilled this charade was about to end.

Sakura had felt the constant vigilance from Kakashi while she had been working on their target. It made her feel a little sick to her stomach that he was watching the whole time. She thoroughly regretted asking Kakashi to be her backup for this mission. It was unfair of her to put both of them in this position. But hindsight was always 20/20, and this was a mistake she'd never make again.

The moment she maneuvered the Doctor into the hotel room, she stepped back and casted a genjutsu. Relieved he wasn't touching her anymore, she watched as he moved himself to the bed and started to remove his own clothes. Sakura observed him for a moment, making sure that the visions he was seeing were keeping him thoroughly occupied. The last thing she needed was for the Doctor to be naturally resilient to genjutsu. However, he seemed to be fully under her spell, which was just the way she wanted it.

She heard him moan and even mumble a few dirty words to the air. Knowing that he was completely enraptured in his fantasy, Sakura grabbed her purse and took her toothbrush out of it and moved to the bathroom to clean out her mouth. She couldn't wait to get back to her and Kakashi's room to fully wash away this day.

Unfortunately, while she had been hoping to get more information from the doctor, Sakura was unable to complete that aspect of the mission. Sakura had pushed for information as much as she could, but their target had no idea who his client was, besides being hired by a numbered company who used a liaison to pass information and conduct their business. So that side of the mission would have to remain in the hands of their Kaminari partners. She had hoped that she was able to contribute more, but at least she could still find a way to counter the effects of the neurotoxin that was causing all of the problems.

Now she only had to wait for Kakashi to return and let her know that he had finished his part. She looked forward to putting this whole mission behind her. Sakura just wanted to go home and crawl into bed with Kakashi and have him wrap his arms around her, and whisper sweet nothings to her.

* * *

Kakashi lept from rooftop to rooftop, letting his henge drop midair. His form shimmered into his natural look as he landed on a slippery roof. He rushed from the lab taking a big risk with how fast he was moving because he was possibly being careless with being seen. Knowing that he was risking the mission for a semblance of peace of mind was worth it to him. Try as he might, he attempted to push away the image of Sakura flirting while on the arm of another man. That man kissing her neck with a hand on her waist, slipping down to cup her ass. It made Kakashi's blood boil. Jealousy wasn't a familiar emotion he had to contend with—in fact, he's almost never been jealous before. But that was before he started seeing Sakura, before falling for her.

With an angry desperation, he flew back to the hotel. Kakashi knew that if he didn't hurry, Sakura wouldn't be able to hold out sleeping with their target without raising suspicions.

Despite knowing better, he couldn't stop himself. He needed to see this with his own eyes. Sakura had been so eager to follow this man, this target around all night like a purring kitten. And of course the man sucked up all the attention that an overly attractive and brilliant woman gave him. The target would never get any better than Sakura—and neither would he, if he was being honest with himself.

Kakashi was unable to stop his thoughts from running wild as he rushed back to the hotel. There was a chance that depending on what Kakashi came upon, the man wouldn't survive the night. It wasn't in the mission to kill the target, but accidents happen. Kakashi could make almost anything look like an accident.

Thinking of that man enjoying Sakura the same way that he had, making her moan the way he had, making her sigh his name, was more than Kakashi could handle.

Consequences be damned.

Mission be damned.

He crawled up the side of the building until he reached the 9th floor, where he had booked the room for Sakura. Carefully keeping his body out of the view, he shifted his head so that he could peer inside the window of the luxurious bedroom suite.

What he saw astounded him and stopped him in his tracks.

Sakura sat fully clothed and comfortably on a chair at the end of the bed, and with a kunai in hand, cleaning underneath her fingernails. The Doctor was naked on the bed with a pillow between his legs and he was humping it as if he was having sex. Sakura must have caught him in a genjutsu because there was no other reason for the scene before him.

Shifting his hand to help him move into a better position was enough to get Sakura's attention. At first Kakashi saw her hand tighten on her kunai until she saw that it was him.

Then her face shifted from startled to furious.

She had caught him spying on her, breaking protocol and changing the plans. So of course she was angry.

Kakashi was infuriated with himself as well. His emotions had gotten the better of him, but not because he was worried about his partner—no—but because he was a jealous mess who needed to see what she would do to complete the mission.

He was wrong. So wrong, and now he had broken her trust .

Unable to look at her anymore because of his shame, he shifted his eyes and looked at the floor of the hotel room. Kakashi needed to complete his side of the mission and successfully return the Doctor's keys to her so that she could leave.

Making his way to the roof to enter the building from there, he quickly made his way to the door of the hotel room where Sakura was. He could hear the Doctor's moans and the bed rocking against the wall, but he now knew the truth behind the situation.

A fresh wave of remorse filtered through Kakashi. He placed the keys on the floor in the corner, subtly flared his chakra and then stepped away.

There was nothing left for him to do here, so he once more applied his henge—as useless as it was at this point—and left the building. Perhaps the henge was a mute point now, but his pride demanded that he attempted to finish this mission as he should have in the first place.

Making his way back to their shared hotel room, he locked the door and stripped his clothes on his way to the bathroom.

He wanted to have a fast shower before she returned. He could only imagine the argument that was going to take place. She had every right to be pissed off at him, since he had crossed a line tonight. His emotions had gotten the better of him and had put the mission in jeopardy in order to fulfill his selfish desire.

If the Doctor had seen him, and confronted Sakura about it, then it was entirely possible the clients would abandon using this doctor for another safer alternative, perhaps even killing this one for being a leak. However, if no one knew that he was the potential information source, then he could continue being the source of intelligence until the culprits were caught and dealt with.

It would be all his fault if the doctor was needlessly killed and their source lost.

Kakashi knew better. He knew how vital information was and how hard it was to obtain at times, so to put the mission in such a vulnerable state was shallow and foolish.

Just the way he felt about himself at the moment.

He was dreading the confrontation with Sakura. And he knew there would be one. She wasn't known for keeping her temper in check when she'd been pushed too far.

Kakashi showered fast, so that he could be prepared for when Sakura returned to their room. He threw on a clean pair of pants and sat on the edge of the bed, and waited. Kakashi knew she'd be back soon, and he'd place himself at her mercy to make amends for fucking up.

Kakashi waited with his arms resting on his legs, hunched over. The weight of the confrontation that was about to happen pushed any relief he might have felt when he realised Sakura used a genjutsu. He hadn't thrown on a shirt, deciding to leave his chest bare, hoping it might ply Sakura in being lenient with him, even if just a bit.

Hearing the lock turn, and the door open slowly, he sat up as Sakura entered. She didn't bother making eye contact with him as she brushed past him.

She didn't speak, didn't look, and didn't even acknowledge his presence. The silent treatment was a formidable weapon, since he was so desperate for her to talk to him.

The bathroom door closed with an audible click, leaving Kakashi once more to his own thoughts.

It was at least another twenty minutes before the door reopened and a freshly showered Sakura walked out in her shinobi outfit. The dress and shoes hung off of one arm as she walked past him and towards her bag.

Bracing himself for the worst, he stood up, turned and took a step towards her.

"Sakura, I—" he started.

"Shut up and pack. We're leaving in ten minutes." She didn't bother to turn around, she just continued to place her clothing in her bag with the rest of her items.

Even though he heard the finality in her voice, he wanted to try to clear the air before they left.

"Sakura, please, we should talk."

"Not here. Not now."

Kakashi was getting angry with being brushed off so easily. "Then when?" he demanded fiercely. Kakashi didn't want to leave the hotel room until things were sorted out between them.

Sakura continued to walk briskly around the small room, grabbing things and placing them into her travel pack. It was clear to Kakashi that she wasn't in the mood to talk, which only caused him to become even more frustrated with the situation.

Against his better judgement, he muttered 'childish' half under his breath. Unfortunately Sakura heard his insult clearly.

She turned to face him, fury covering her features. "Are you fucking kidding me? You're calling me childish?" She jabbed a finger into his naked chest. "I told you to pack and as mission leader on this, I've given you an order. Obey."

Grudgingly, Kakashi did as he was told. It didn't sit well to leave things unresolved between them, but he could tell that now was not the time for any type of conversation. Emotions were running high between them, too high to have a civil discussion.

They packed up quickly, wiping down any trace of them being there, removing all the security wards they had placed for their safety and checking out with the hotel staff.

Sakura was all smiles and overly polite with the clerks at the front desk, not letting on her mood at all. The pair walked in silence as they left the town. It was well into the night by the time they made it off the main roads and into the forest where they could finally move freely like shinobi.

Not waiting for Kakashi, Sakura took to the trees and moved at a swift pace. She was so infuriated with him. After seeing his face peer into the hotel window, she knew immediately that his lust got the better of him or worse, that he did not trust her to do the job. It both irritated her and even hurt her that he didn't believe that she was capable of completing her side of the mission.

She had felt the long history of not being on the same level of her teammates rear its ugly head once more. That feeling of unworthiness had been difficult to stomp down all those years ago. Sakura had worked so hard to prove her value and worth over the years, and yet something like this would have her teenage insecurities come flowing back.

At this point, she just wanted to be home in her own bed and then drown herself in work. Specifically working on a neutralizing agent for the neurotoxin. Wrapping up all aspects of this mission would help to bring her peace. Until then, she'd just rush through the woods in the middle of the night with Kakashi trailing behind her.

Moving at a steady pace, this trip took them 34 hours on their way there, but with the pace that they were moving at now, they'd likely make it home in under 30 hours, which suited Sakura just fine.

* * *

Kakashi trailed behind her for hours—six to be exact—and he was feeling exhausted. More mentally than anything else. He stared at her back and debated with himself how to best handle the situation.

All he needed was a moment, a second to explain and express his feelings towards her, and perhaps she'd forgive him. But at this rate, he had no idea how to even begin that conversation without her taking her anger out on him with her fists.

Risking his own neck, he decided to ask for a short break. Not that he completely needed it, but a quick bite to eat and stretch would be good for both of them.

Speeding up so he was beside her, he looked over, hoping to make eye contact with her, however, he had no such luck. Sighing, he spoke up, raising his voice so that she heard him.

"Sakura, can we take a short break?"

She acknowledged him by putting more power behind her leap, propelling her forward fast and further than even he could. He did what he could to match her pace while she raced ahead, but she had so much more chakra reserves than he had.

To his surprise she dropped out of the trees and came to rest beside a marsh. It was still very early in the morning, so that most living things were asleep, except the frogs and crickets.

Kakashi landed near to her and took a careful step towards her. If they could just talk things out, he knew things would get better. However, just as he was a few feet away from her, she turned, gave him a cold look and spoke.

"Ten minutes, then we move out." In one giant leap, she landed on one of the highest branches of the tree beside them, and took position as watch.

Sighing, Kakashi reached up and scratched the back of his head and walked to the marsh's edge. He felt hot and uncomfortable in his own skin. He wasn't sure how much longer he could handle Sakura's silent treatment.

He stepped into the marsh and waded in until the calm waters lapped at his thighs. He could feel Sakura's gaze upon him as he pulled down his mask. Using his hands, he cupped the water and brought it up to his face and washed away the sweat. Another cup he poured into his hair and another onto the back of his neck. It seemed that the cool water was going to be the only relief he would be getting for a while yet.

Kakashi had started debating hours ago if he should even tell Sakura about his revelation of his feelings towards her. Besides the fact that she was mad at him, she had never indicated that she felt anything more for him than just friendship and sexual desire. A body to warm her bed.

Perhaps that was how it started for him as well, but he was human, and he cared for her greatly, so maybe it shouldn't have surprised him that he ended up falling for her. Perchance this argument between them was for the best.

Could things actually work out between them? As in the long run?

He didn't have answers for these types of questions right now, and he wasn't likely able to think clearly until he got a good night's rest.

Wiping his hands on his pants, he moved to stand at the base of the tree she was resting in. From his angle he could see her, but not her expression. He missed seeing the smile on her face and being the reason behind it.

He doubted he'd see that for a while because of his foolishness.

Reaching into his pocket, he pulled out a baggy of dried fruit and meats. Perhaps a small peace offering could help start a conversation between them.

"Sakura, I have some snacks here if you'd like any—"

"Lets move out," she said tersely and sprung forward into the next tree.

Kakashi looked longingly towards her disappearing figure. The only thing he could do now was follow her into the trees with the hope that they could discuss things before they arrive in Konoha. He didn't want to have a vocal fight between them in the village full of nosy shinobi.

They continued to travel at high speeds, stopping every six hours or so for a ten minute break. It was a break-neck pace that he hadn't been sure how Sakura was keeping it up, until he asked. A small bottle filled with little pills—soldier pills—was thrown at him. He caught it effortlessly, and now knew how she was able to keep this up, even with her chakra reserves. He had carefully opened the little bottle and took a pill for himself.

It was still approximately twelve hours until they would reach the gates of Konoha, so he was glad for the boost of energy that flowed through him. Kakashi felt that he would need it later when he would finally corner Sakura into a confrontation.

Until then, they raced home.

* * *

As they got closer to Konoha, the forest slowly became more and more familiar. Kakashi knew that he was running out of time if he wanted to stop Sakura and have a discussion. He still wanted to talk outside of the village. Kakashi was sure that their confrontation was going to be loud, and potentially violent, knowing her temperament.

Sakura was still rushing ahead of him and ignoring him for the most part. The only way he was going to stop her, would be to get in front of her and physically impede her from continuing to run, forcing her to halt.

When he knew they only had about ten minutes until they reached the main gates, and were in a place of relative safety, he decided it was time. With a burst of chakra Kakashi pushed himself ahead and quickly turned around, putting up his hands to stop her. Unfortunately, his worst fears happened.

She didn't act surprised, just irritated. With a swift movement, she initiated a roundhouse kick to remove him from her path. He put up an arm to block it from making contact with his head, but allowed his arm to take the full force of her kick. He knew that engaging in a substitution would only anger her further, so he allowed his body to be kicked away.

When he landed hard on the ground, sure that his arm was broken, he heard the thud as she landed beside him. He was unsure if making eye contact with her would only damn him further, but he couldn't resist looking up at her. Vibrant and angry, but still the most beautiful woman to him.

"Okay, maybe I deserved that," he said with a wince.

"You think?" she sneered.

"I just want to talk things out and clear the air," he pleaded. He shifted his position so that he could lean against a tree while holding his aching arm.

"You're a selfish asshole," she spat out.

"It's a popular opinion," he sighed, trying to keep his composure.

"Why the fuck did you feel it necessary to peep on me like some pervert? Or worse! Someone you don't trust to complete the mission?"

"That's not it at all, Sakura. I know I can come off as such with my own eccentricities, but I can promise you, that's not the reason."

"Then what? What made you so eager to betray me and compromise the mission?"

"No! That's not it at all! That's not what I meant," he exclaimed vehemently.

"Then why?! Why the fuck would you do that?!"

"I didn't like it, okay!" he exclaimed while shifting his head forward. He didn't know how to be open about his feelings, especially when she was so angry at him.

"So because you didn't like it, you decided to put the whole mission at risk?"

"Again, no! I just thought I could save you from having sex with a stranger."

"And you're sure that's the only reason?"

"Yes! What other reason would there be?"

"Because you didn't think I could finish the mission!"

"Of course that's not it. You fucking another man wasn't sitting well with me."

"Jealousy? From you? Fuck, Kakashi! You knew from the beginning that this was a seduction mission, so you could have refused the mission!"

Kakashi was getting frustrated at her blindness towards the way he was feeling. So without thinking he shouted the thing that was loudest in his mind. "Don't you know that I can't refuse you anything?" His words echoed throughout the forest, alerting anyone nearby to their presence.

But it stopped her from pacing in front of him. The silence was deafening between them as she digested his outburst. She was shocked, but he could tell that she was having a hard time believing what he said.

Sakura took a step back away from Kakashi, moving to distance herself from him physically, mentally and emotionally. Not wanting her to run away from him, he stood up and took a step towards her, reaching out to her to fill the void she created by taking a step back.

"Sakura, I—" His fingers itched to drift across her soft cheek.

"Enough. I can't do this tonight Kakashi. I can't. I'm tired, and I can't think."

His hand that was hovering in midair, dropped back to his side as his head fell forward allowing his hair to cover his eyes. He was bone tired and all he wanted to do was crawl into bed with Sakura and wrap his arms around her, nuzzle her hair and sleep. Nothing could help relax him better than holding her.

However, he was sure that she wouldn't allow that if she couldn't even stand him reaching out to touch her. He could tell that the only thing she wanted, was to be far away from him, which hurt him more than anything else.

He watched her turn her back on him and began to walk away. He was sure that he had messed this up so badly that he'd missed his chance with her, and he felt that there was nothing he could do at this point. Kakashi didn't know if giving her space was the best way to handle the situation or if he should just confront her.

But he wasn't ready for another broken limb, so he let her walk away. He couldn't make her love him. Kakashi wasn't the type of person to force his presence on someone if they so obviously didn't want it. So what else could he do to convince her otherwise?

Nothing.

She jumped back into the trees, slower this time, almost sluggishly she made her way to the gates. Kakashi followed behind her at a distance. The pair wordlessly made their way through the gates, giving the guard on duty an acknowledging tilt of their head as they walked by.

Sakura had one last task as lead for this mission, so she turned to Kakashi and held out her hand.

"I'll take the scroll with the samples," she said as calmly as she could.

With measured movements, he reached into his vest pulling out the required item and carefully placed it in her hand, letting his fingers graze her palm.

"Here you go." When his eyes met hers, his heart leapt into his chest at the emotions he found there. He didn't know what to do with such expressful eyes that shone with such anger and hurt towards him. Did his eyes even convey an ounce of the love he felt for her?

"Goodbye Kakashi."

The finality in her voice scared him to his core. But what could he do if she could never love him?

Nothing.

He could do nothing.

* * *

Oh no! What ever is he going to do?! I know! ^_~ You'll just have to wait until the next chapter to see what happens! 

Please leave me a kind review! They really do help encourage me to continue writing!

Thank you!


	17. Something Wordy and Wonderful

Thank you so much to my wonderful beta, **Sarcastic-Mommy**! I am so thankful and grateful for all of your amazing help!

* * *

Sakura headed straight home. Carefully, she held herself together with all her willpower as she walked through the empty streets of the village. She needed to be home in her own space before she felt safe enough to fall apart. Just one more block, then up the stairs to her apartment, through the door and then that was it: freedom to crumble.

She was proud of herself that she had made it that far. She dropped her gear and finally headed into the bathroom. Reaching behind the shower curtain she blindly turned on the water and continued to strip.

Once she stepped in and the hot water hit her, the tears came flowing out and she broke down. She only felt safe knowing that the sputter of water would drown out her own sobs. Sinking to the floor, she put her arms around her knees, hugging them to her chest, and burying her face, she let it all out.

Sakura wasn't sure what to think or feel anymore—she wasn't sure if she could even trust her own emotions because of how worn out she felt. The water had started to grow cold by the time her tears had begun to slow. Standing up on shaky legs, she quickly washed away the mission, turned off the water and got out. Drying off with jerky movements she threw on her fuzzy bathrobe and made her way to her own bed.

Crawling in without getting dressed, she pulled the covers up and tried to fall asleep even though her mind continued to trouble her, reminding her of how she reached this point, leaving her feeling terribly heartsick. Feeling cried out, all she wanted to do was fall asleep and rest up for tomorrow, a day which promised to be long and filled with lab work.

* * *

Before she was ready for it, morning came, and Sakura felt like she hadn't slept a wink. But she still had one final part of the mission to complete, so Sakura dragged herself out of bed and got ready for the day. With tired and puffy eyes, she looked at the clock and saw that it was only 7:34 in the morning, which meant she got less than 4 hours of sleep. It wasn't ideal, but she'd worked with less in the past. She'd have to work with what she had.

She needed to get into the lab and analyze the samples that Kakashi took from the Doctor. Plus she knew that she could hide there and no one would be able to find and bother her. Hiding from everyone for the day sounded very appealing since she needed to think.

Think about everything. Think about her own life and what she wanted. Did she want to be with a man who she couldn't trust, a man who didn't respect her, and who obviously didn't love her?

Maybe it was time to end the silly distraction and go back to being friends—if they could even go back to just friends. She knew she could get over him with a little bit of time away. It was safer for her to take a step back now before her feelings grew even stronger.

Burying herself in work was always the best way to keep herself safe—especially her heart.

Perhaps once she got a handle on the toxin, she could have a girl's night with Ino and finally confess about Kakashi and get her friend's opinion. As much as Ino was a loudmouth, she was able to see through difficult situations and give an honest opinion—which was exactly what Sakura needed: a friend and an honest opinion.

* * *

Kakashi was miserable.

He was sure there were better words to describe just how low he felt, but miserable was a good place to start.

After Sakura had left him at the gates, he didn't bother returning home—there was nothing there for him, except emptiness. Instead he turned and headed towards the cenotaph. Perhaps the quietness and his long-gone friends would help him think.

He had truly gone and fucked things up with Sakura. She had trusted him, and he had broken her trust.

And now their non-relationship was over before it had a chance to even begin and flourish.

How had things gone so wrong so fast? Were his actions that bad?

Kakashi looked at the stone before him, expecting some sort of answers, but none came. He sat and looked at all the names he recognized—comrades, teammates, friends.

There had been times in the past when all he could think about was how much he deserved to be on that stone and not standing before it. Sometimes those thoughts still came back to him.

Sakura had been the light in his life for the past few months—and even before that, if he was being honest with himself. The memory of the times they had spent together before they started having sex were just as precious to him. He wasn't sure if he could pinpoint the exact moment when she had wormed her way past his defenses and into his heart.

But she had his heart now, and it was hers to do with it as she pleased, even if she didn't want it.

He wasn't sure how long he had been in front of the memorial stone before his shadows showed up. At first they had respected his space, but when minutes turned into hours and the sun began to rise, Genma quietly approached him.

"Hey buddy, what's going on?" he asked as he took a seat beside him. "Rough mission?"

Without making eye contact, he answered his friend. "You could say that."

"Something happened between you and your pink haired lady?"

"I don't think I can call her mine," Kakashi stated as if he was stating the day of the week.

"Oh?"

Kakashi would have rather had silence instead of idle chatter while he continued his self-deprecation, but it didn't seem as if his friend was going to leave him be.

"I fucked up, Genma, and I don't think I can fix it."

"So you're just going to sit here and not even try?"

Feeling his hands clench at his side, Kakashi had to work to keep himself calm before he felt the need to lash out at his friend.

"Genma, I appreciate your opinion, but for now, just give me some space," Kakashi nearly growled in frustration. If he didn't have the answers for himself, how could he give his friend any?

"Okay, buddy. I'm here if you need a friend," Genma added as he stood up and took a few steps back. He didn't move far as he sat back down a few feet behind him, so he was there while still giving him space. It was the best Kakashi could hope for, being that they were his friends as well as his guard detail.

As the sun rose higher in the sky, he could hear the murmurs of the village waking up. He still wasn't in the mood to talk with anyone so the only thing he could think of doing was find someplace even quieter than the memorial stone.

On his walk, he kept his head down, unwilling to make eye contact with anyone else. He couldn't bear even the simple pleasantries from the people recognizing the Rokudaime. If he didn't look them in the eye, they weren't likely to engage him in conversation. At least that was the theory.

He felt his two friends following him, keeping their presence well masked, but not enough to escape his well trained senses. It irritated him a little that he wasn't allowed any alone time.

The only quiet place that he could think of was the Hokage's mountain. Most people didn't go there since it was such a hike and many thought it was inauspicious to be standing on the heads of Hokages—past and present.

It took him almost an hour to make it to the peak of the mountain with his slow pace, thinking and contemplating the whole time he walked. Much of this thinking perhaps should have been done before he fell into bed with Sakura, but hindsight was always 20/20. He had put their relationship and friendship at risk for some wonderful nights between them—which he would never regret or forget.

That was at least something he was sure of. He'd treasure every second that he had spent with her and he'd hold them dear to his heart. But he'd keep quiet about it—he didn't want to pressure her to stay with someone like himself if she didn't want to.

It felt devastating to think he'd never be able to hold her again, tenderly brush a thumb across her lips, watch the way she would throw her head back when her peak rushed over her. All these little treasures he'd keep to himself, savour them and draw on them when he needed them most.

Sitting on the precipice of the Hokage's mountain, he looked over the village and continued to contemplate. Maybe if he sat here long enough, he could come up with a solution to fix things with the woman he loved.

* * *

Sakura worked diligently in the lab until she couldn't keep her eyes open any longer. When she found herself nodding off at the desk, she put her samples aside and moved to the couch that was placed here just for such an occasion. She spent an uncomfortable few hours sleeping with a broken couch spring poking annoyingly into her back, but at least here, no one could bother her. She needed to focus on creating an agent for the toxin that would counter its effects and save the villagers on which the toxin was being tested on.

She figured that if she spent the whole day at it and tomorrow as well, she'd surely have something to give to their Kaminari counterparts. Sakura hated seeing innocent people suffer, so the quicker she found a solution, the better for everyone.

Her sleep on the couch was restless and rough, and after catching less than six hours, she felt that she could get back to work and put in several more hours of work. The sooner she got this done, the sooner she could put an end to the mission and go home to sleep for a whole day. She truly wanted nothing more than to crawl in her own bed and forget all about this mission.

She was thankful that the lab had free coffee, a bowl of fruit that someone donated and a vending machine. It was the life-giving energy she needed to push through another 12 hours of working tirelessly on a solution.

When she had finally found two possible solutions, she nearly cried out in happiness. Sakura was thankful once more that her intelligence and dedication would save lives. She sent both options to her team to replicate enough for a first wave of shots with the written instructions to help the Kaminari medics start their own batches. In less than 24 hours the client would have 500 shots and detailed directions so that they can begin to supply themselves.

Sakura took in a deep breath of fresh air as she left the lab. It was late in the afternoon but still a bit early for dinner. Grabbing some quick takeout, she made her way home. Her place felt so empty the way it was. She was worried that Kakashi would attempt to visit her, but she doubted he would come into her home without her express permission—especially now, considering how they ended their last conversation.

Arriving home, she noticed the flashing light on her answering machine. Her heart skipped a beat, thinking that it could be Kakashi, but she wasn't even sure if he had her number in the first place.

Pressing play, she got her food out from the bag and started eating as Ino's voice came through the little machine.

"Come on, pick up! I know you're there. Come on, Sakura. I know you're in the village. Pick up, pick up, pick up. No? Okay, well call me back. I want some girl time with you soon, okay? Bye!"

Sakura couldn't help but smile at the rise and fall of her best friend's voice. She missed her too and looked forward to some girl time with her as well. But not tonight. She needed sleep, in her own bed with no one bugging her or keeping her awake.

She promised herself that after a full night's sleep, she'd call Ino in the morning and plan a get together with her. Sakura could really use her best friend and her blunt answers that could always cut through the emotions and get right to the heart of the issue.

Showering once more, she crawled into bed, slightly less numb than when she last spent the night here. Hard work had often been a balm for her psyche and helped her deal with stressful issues, making her feel worthy of rest.

* * *

The next morning had Sakura feeling almost more tired than she had been when she went to bed the night before. She knew that the insufficient hours of sleep and her abnormal routine over the past few days had messed up her sleep patterns. Of course, it hadn't helped that she dreamed of Kakashi.

It nearly had her in tears when she woke up, remembering the blissful happiness she felt as she dreamed of them together. She couldn't see his face, but he had his arms around her, and she could tell by the scent that it was him. They sat under a tree in a meadow with the pack running and playing around them. She was resting in his lap and he pulled her tightly against him, tucking her head under his chin.

It was perfection. Nothing could get better than that.

So when she woke up alone in her own bed, she felt the loss keenly.

Sakura looked over at the clock and saw that it was past 10 in the morning. She was thankful that Ino would likely be awake already. However, she also knew that she needed at least one cup of coffee in her before she reached out. Maybe some sort of breakfast too.

By the time the coffee machine was done, her rice was about halfway cooked. Taking the first few sips gave her the instant kick that she needed to start her day. The rice and egg would be all the energy she needed to survive the next few hours.

Getting dressed in some of her rarely used civilian clothes, she made her way back to the kitchen to call Ino.

"Yamanaka residence," came Sai's voice.

"Hey Sai, is Ino there?"

"Of course. Let me get her for you."

Sakura waited patiently for Ino to come to the phone.

"Forehead? Is that you?"

"Hi Pig," Sakura said with a roll of her eyes. Even after all these years, their childhood nicknames still could bring a smile to her face.

"About time you got back to me! What took you so long?"

"I had to do some important lab work that was part of the mission I just got home from," Sakura explained.

Sakura clearly heard Ino's dramatic sigh as she accepted her reason.

"Fine, I guess that's plausible. So what's going on?"

"Actually, I could really use some girl time and some of your advice. Do you have time to get together with me?"

"Damn right! I still want to ask you more about your secret lover!"

"Good, because actually, that's what I could use some advice on. I could really use a second opinion."

"What about a third opinion?"

"Huh? What do you mean?"

"Nevermind that. I'll be over in 20 minutes, so be ready! See you in a bit!" And without waiting for an answer, Ino hung up on her.

Sakura wasn't sure what Ino had planned, but she was sure that Ino would provide her with an objective opinion.

It was exactly 20 minutes later when Sakura heard a knock on her door. She figured that Ino must be extremely curious about what Sakura wanted to talk about. She knew how much Ino loved to gossip, but at the same time, Sakura knew she could trust her to keep her mouth shut when it was really important.

"Come on! What are you waiting for?"

"Wait, what? I thought you were coming over here so we can chat?"

"Nope, I was coming over here to pick you up. I had planned on meeting Hinata for tea in 8 minutes, and I don't want to be late," Ino said as she took Sakura by the wrist and dragged her out of her own apartment.

Sakura wasn't sure how many people she wanted to know about her sleeping with Kakashi, but she knew that Hinata was better at keeping secrets than Ino. So at least she didn't have to worry about that.

On their way over, Ino brought Sakura up to date on all village rumours and even briefly touched on her own life with her husband and son .

When they arrived, Ino knocked, but didn't bother waiting for an answer as she let herself in. Sakura quietly followed her through the door and took off her shoes.

They found Hinata resting on the couch holding a sleeping baby in her arms and Shizune standing beside her.

"Perfect! Another woman's opinion to help set Sakura straight," Ino said quietly as she smiled at the two women.

"Ino, I'm glad you could make it for tea, and I'm happy to see you brought Sakura as well. I'll put on the kettle once Shizune gives me the all clear."

The medic in Sakura kicked in. "Is everything alright?" she asked worriedly.

Shizune smiled at her. "Yes, everything is just fine. Hinata was having a minor dizzy spell this morning so Naruto sent for me. I think Naruto was more rattled than Hinata was. But as I just assured Hinata, it's all normal and things are fine with her. But I'll put the kettle on, and you Hinata, can just rest. I could use a cup or two before I go back to work." Shizune made her way to the kitchen where she had shooed Naruto earlier.

"Why don't you take a seat while we wait for the tea." Hinata smiled at them politely. "I'm glad you could make it too, Sakura. It's been a few weeks since I've seen you."

Sakura smiled. She knew that Hinata was proficient at polite chitchat, but Sakura could see that she was curious as to why she was there. And of course, Ino didn't wait a second to fill her in.

"Sakura here is having boy troubles, and asked for our advice. It seems that her and her secret lover had a fight."

"Is that so?" Hinata said.

"Did I hear that right, Sakura?" Shizune's voice came as she walked in with a tray of four cups and a pot of tea. "Boy troubles? Or is it man troubles?" she teased.

Sakura sighed to herself. Shizune knew that she had been sleeping with Kakashi for months. It seemed that it was time for her secret to come out.

Ino looked between the pair suspiciously. "Sakura, does Shizune know something that I don't?"

"Oh yes, I found out a few months ago who Sakura has a crush on, and it seems that her crush became her lover."

"What is she talking about Sakura? Or rather who?" Ino questioned.

There was no way around this now. It was time for her to fess up. "I've been seeing Kakashi," she said quietly, making sure not to make eye contact with any of the ladies.

A little peep came out of Hinata as she brought the hot cup of tea to her mouth to hide her reaction. Ino's gasp of outrage was definitely not as demure as Hinata's response, while Shizune just snickered on her own.

Quickly eyeing the sleeping baby, Ino made a silent screech in Sakura's direction. She waggled an accusatory finger at Sakura and hissed at her. "What?! How long? And by 'seeing' you do mean sleeping, right? Please tell me you're bouncing on one of the hottest bachelors of Konoha!"

It was Sakura's turn to hiss back at her best friend. "Ino! Please!"

"Fess up Forehead!"

"Yes, okay, I've been sleeping with Kakashi for a few months," Sakura sighed at Ino's reaction.

"And?"

"And what?"

"Is he as good as everyone says he is?"

Sakura blushed deeply at Ino's comment. "I'm not answering that Pig!"

"You're blush says otherwise, Sakura," Shizune said.

"Okay, fine! Yes! He's fantastic! The best I've ever had!"

"Wait a second! You said at the pub that you were sleeping with an ANBU agent. And Kakashi was sitting right beside you!"

"Well, Kakashi usually wears his old ANBU gear when he goes out on missions lately. And yes, Kakashi was sitting right beside me, and taking great delight in your interrogation!"

"Kinky," Ino teased calmly, now that Sakura was readily answering the questions she was really interested in.

"Sakura, you said you were having troubles? Did something happen between you and Kakashi-san?" Hinata asked before she took another sip, the light blush gracing her features visible through the steam rising from her cup of tea.

Ino turned to Hinata and gave her a curious look. "Why aren't you interested in the juicy details? You don't seem that surprised at that revelation."

A look of shock crossed Hinata's features. "Oh, well when Kakashi-san came to the hospital to visit me after Himawari was born, I could tell that something was different about how he was treating Sakura, and she was acting differently with him too. So I wondered if something had changed between them."

"So you knew?!"

Hinata shook her head emphatically. "I didn't 'know', but I thought it was possible."

Ino turned to Shizune and pointed a finger towards her. "And you knew."

"Yep!"

Sakura could immediately see where this was going. "Ino, I wasn't trying to keep it from you. Kakashi and I just haven't discussed telling people. And Shizune got me drunk to find out that I had a crush on him."

"You got yourself drunk," Shizune explained offhandedly.

Once more, Sakura sighed. "Can we talk about the problem yet?"

Hinata and Shizune nodded, but Ino held up a hand. "Wait, I have one more question. Have you seen his face?"

"Yes, Ino. I've seen his face. Before we started sleeping together, actually."

"And?"

"And? What?"

"What does he look like, of course!"

Sakura smiled at the memory of his face when he'd tease her, or kiss her. "He's definitely handsome. Besides the scar across his eye, I bet you wouldn't recognize him. His face makes him look so young. He's got these perfect lips and when he truly smiles, it always takes my breath away," Sakura explained as if she was caught in a daydream.

"Are you in love with him?" Hinata asked quietly.

Sakura's shoulders dropped as she nodded her head. "Yes, and I have been for a while I think."

Shizune put a supportive hand on her shoulder. "What's so bad about being in love with him? Kakashi is a good man."

"I know that, of course. But he doesn't love me back. This is just a fling to him. And after what just happened during our mission, I'm not sure if there's a future for us."

"Why don't you start from the beginning and explain everything that happened?" Hinata suggested calmly.

Sakura took the hot cup of tea in her hands and sat back on the couch. There was a lot to explain in order to bring them all up to speed with what happened between herself and Kakashi. Many emotional highs and lows to recall, but the beginning was always the best place to start.

Three pots of tea later, with a pause to order in some lunch for the ladies, Sakura had explained the whole situation. From the build-up of teasing and flirting, to their first kiss and their first night together. She didn't go into great detail about each sexual act, despite Ino's persistence, but she included as much as she thought pertinent.

For the most part Sakura was allowed to recount her story, explaining what happened but each of them had the occasional question, Sakura doing her best to answer all of their inquiries.

Just as she was wrapping up her side of the story, Naruto walked in with a young Boruto hanging off one arm, and before either of the boys could get a peep out, Ino turned to them and gave them a strict command.

"Out. We'll still be another few hours. You can go over to my place and play with Sai and Inojin," Ino commanded leaving no room for argument.

And with a slow nod from Hinata, Naruto sighed and agreed to leave. He walked over and kissed Hinata on the top of her head and left the room still carrying Boruto on one arm.

Sakura turned back towards the other three ladies in the room with a shrug of her shoulders. "That's about it."

"So let me get this straight, after a few months of fantastic sex and you guys spending almost every waking moment together, you decide it's a good idea to bring him on a seduction mission. Where he continued acting like himself. He teased you relentlessly, but for the most part, keeps his hands to himself. Then you get mad and feel betrayed when he comes to check on you. On your way back, you guys have an argument where you pretty much ended it. Is that correct?" Ino questioned.

"More or less," Sakura conceded.

"I see. And you still believe that it was a good idea to have him on your team for the mission?"

"I know now it wasn't."

"I hate to say it, but you should have known better before. There are some things you do with your significant other, and some things you just don't," Ino said bluntly.

Sakura gave her a short glare. "So you wouldn't do a mission with Sai?"

"Definitely not a seduction mission!" Ino said haughtily.

Sakura continued her piercing stare at her best friend, but turned to look at the other two women. "And you two? What do you think?"

"I wouldn't feel comfortable doing such a mission with Naruto there. I'd rather have female backup, if I had a choice," Hinata explained.

"No way would I do a mission with Genma ever. There is a good reason why there are rules behind working with your significant other. You can't think straight when you're conducting a mission with someone you've slept with—and you need to keep your head on right for missions, or someone could get injured. I agree with Hinata, bring a wing-woman next time."

"Or you could have asked Sai to be your backup, if you wanted a man to come with you."

"So all of you think that I shouldn't have brought Kakashi in the first place?" Sakura asked, slightly taken aback.

All three of them nodded.

"And to be honest, Sakura, I think you've overreacted to what he did. Is it so bad that he wanted to make sure that you were okay?" Ino asked remarkably gently.

"Really?"

"Yes," Ino replied with certainty.

"Sakura, I think you and Kakashi-san need to talk about your relationship. From my experience with Naruto, and someone who had a rough childhood, like Kakashi-san, they haven't had experience expressing emotions. He may not even be able to recognize love, if he hasn't experienced it. Like what you said to me that one time. Naruto thought that all love equated to his love of ramen. I had to teach him the difference."

Shizune spoke up after Hinata. "I don't think there's a point in placing blame. You both need to fess up."

"Fess up? You mean confess my feelings?"

"Yes, and he will hopefully explain his."

"His what?" Sakura asked dumbly.

"His feelings," Shizune said.

Sakura stared at her with a blank look on her face.

"Sakura, listen: for all the time I've known Kakashi, he's never really chased after anyone before. I've never seen him act the way he does when he's with you."

"But he hasn't changed," Sakura assured her.

Shizune caught her eyes and held her stare. "Yes he has. It may not be noticeable to everyone, but I can tell. So can Genma."

Sakura slumped back against the couch as Shizune's words hit her.

"I saw it too," Hinata told her. "When you were both in the hospital room with me. He was always watching you. He seemed nervous, but at the same time, I could tell that he wanted to be standing next to you. I didn't put it all together at first, but it makes sense now."

Ino was the next to speak her mind. "Sakura, you've seemed much happier lately too. You deserve to be happy, so go after him."

Sakura sat still for a few moments, holding the cooling cup of tea in her hands, and contemplated everything they've told her. She didn't know what to do next.

"So what are you going to do, Sakura?" Ino asked.

"I have no idea. You know my history with men. I've never been good with relationships."

"That's not always your fault. Especially when dating ninja. They all come with baggage and issues. We all do." Shizune said as she sighed to herself.

Sakura knew that most of the ninja she met had some sort of tragic past or had issues. Herself included. She had it easier than most, but she still had her own insecurities and doubts—and they reared their heads and plagued her more often than she'd liked to admit.

"I think you should go find him and talk to him," Ino said confidently.

"Now?"

"No, in a few years," Ino huffed at her. "Of course now! Where's that confident woman who punched a goddess in the face?"

Sakura rolled her eyes at her best friend. "Ino, it's not the same."

"Of course not, but draw on that courage to go speak to Kakashi. And think about all that wonderful make up sex you'll get once you guys both apologize," Ino said teasingly.

"I believe that you can work things out with Kakashi-san, Sakura. You're both good people who deserve happiness," Hinata emphasized softly.

"Thank you Hinata. I appreciate that. And thank you Shizune and Ino, I'm grateful for your advice. I'm sorry, Ino, I never meant to keep our relationship a secret, especially from you, but it's just something we hadn't discussed yet, considering his former position as Hokage, I didn't think he'd want rumours to spread."

She wanted to find Kakashi and sort things out. Not exactly sure what to do next, Sakura figured standing up and leaving was a good first step. Gathering her will she smiled and thanked them once again before leaving.

The first two places she looked were his apartment and then the memorial stone. His apartment was completely dark and empty. It looked like he hadn't stepped foot in it since leaving for the mission, which wasn't a good sign at all.

Sakura regretted the way she acted when they arrived back in Konoha. She purposefully made him think that it was over between them. And his empty home gave her an idea of how much her words affected him.

It made her feel such guilt and shame for how she treated him. Her friends did a good job in making her see things from a different perspective.

All she could think about was finding him and making sure things got resolved between them. She still wasn't happy with his decision to spy on her when she was with the target, but at least now she could understand that his reasons might not stem from a lack of faith in her or her abilities but from his own need to know her safe and unharmed in any way.

After making her way to the memorial stone, and not finding him there either, she began to grow even more concerned. She needed to talk to him and make things right between them.

* * *

Kakashi sat on the ground at the top of the Hokage mountain. The sun, setting off in the distance, coated the village in a warm glow. When his close friends had brought some food for him earlier, he thanked them, but asked them to leave him alone for a few days. He needed time to think, and with them reacting to his every twitch, he felt smothered. It surprisingly didn't take much convincing that he'd be safe without their ever-watchful scrutiny.

With each beat of his heart, his arm ached. The ground felt unforgiving under him, and despite having some food earlier, he was starting to feel hunger pains again. However, he couldn't be bothered to remedy it.

He felt pensive but distracted at the same time. Sitting on the Hokage's mountain made him reminisce—he has led a full life, filled with many ups and downs. All of the wars, the loss of family, friends and members of their village. It was so much to take in, but it was hard to stop himself from thinking about it.

His mind led him down the path of all that happened to the village and his life in comparison—the devastation, destruction, rebuilding and flourishing. Could he really compare the global wars with dating Sakura?

His mind was slightly out of control at this point.

Wanting to have a relationship with her was as frightening for him as it was running into a battle that he might not come out of. It was terrifying because he didn't have control. She had all the power and it was intimidating. It was so easy to just sit for hours and let his mind stew on it.

No matter how occupied his mind was, he perceived but didn't react when he heard the shuffling footsteps of someone coming up the pathway. He knew it could only be one of a few people. However, when he felt Naruto's chakra, Kakashi relaxed although he was a little surprised at the same time.

Naruto walked quietly up to Kakashi as he held his sleeping son on his back. He stood at the very precipice of the mountain, looking over his village. It was a clear afternoon and the sunset was perfect, lighting up the sky with bright oranges, yellows and pinks. Kakashi looked up to see a large smile on Naruto's face while young Boruto continued to sleep soundly on his back.

"Kakashi, care to explain what's going on between you and Sakura?" The words came bluntly but quietly. It seemed that he was not going to hold back on this topic.

Kakashi was surprised at how quick Naruto would cut to the core of the reason he was sitting out here. He felt his heart jump into his throat cutting off denials and then slam into his stomach as logic and words left his mind.

"What do you want me to say?" Kakashi mumbled. He didn't think he'd be having this conversation so soon, and with Naruto no less. He knew Naruto cared greatly for their hot tempered teammate, and the Hokage would be a fierce protector of her feelings. It shouldn't surprise him that Naruto would take on this role as well.

"I want you to say that you love her and that she feels the same. I want you both to be happy."

Kakashi swiveled his head quickly towards Naruto. It shocked him that Naruto would be just as invested in his feelings as he was of Sakura's.

Regardless of Naruto's transparent demands, Kakashi didn't have a clear answer for him. "It's complicated."

"Of course it's complicated! The best relationships are. The complications make them worthwhile."

"I—" Kakashi started to say.

"Are you going to try to deny it?" he cut him off. It wasn't said accusingly or in an angry way—just in a matter-of-fact manner.

Kakashi paused, trying to think about a response that would please the hyperactive Hokage. He sighed, getting frustrated with it all. "I don't even know where to begin."

"Then let me. My Sage mode has allowed me to see so much. The more I practice it, the better I get. I can feel everyone's chakra and I can feel the life force of those without chakra. I can feel the elation when a baby is born and the anguish when someone passes. I can feel people's spirits." Naruto turned around and moved to sit carefully beside Kakashi, making sure not to wake his son. They had a quiet moment to themselves before Naruto continued to explain his abilities.

"My friend's emotions are so much more clear to me. I know you've been sleeping with her for a few months, and it doesn't surprise me, if I'm being honest." Those blue eyes were as piercing as they could be gentle.

"I'm sorry Naruto, we didn't mean to hide anything from you—" he started to explain.

"Kakashi do you honestly think I'm mad my friends are happy?" he said lightly.

He finally gave up trying to save face in front of Naruto. "I don't know how to do this, Naruto. I don't know what's expected of me," Kakashi said wearily.

"Be happy."

"How?"

"Each person's happiness is their own responsibility. But you deserve it. It's okay to feel that way Kakashi."

"Is it? I want to be, but it's not that simple. I've done things in my life. I know we all have, but I'm not proud of my past and I can't seem to be able to leave it behind."

Kakashi waited for Naruto to comment, but when nothing came, the silver haired man decided to continue talking.

"Naruto, I'm old. Not exactly spry anymore. And if I'm going to be honest she deserves someone younger who can be there for her longer and make her happy... Anything to make her happy."

Naruto hummed at his ramblings. "Kakashi, your age doesn't really mean much except more experience. And don't regret growing older. It's a privilege denied to so many." Naruto placed his hands on the ground and gently patted it.

It dawned on Kakashi that they were sitting above the Yondaime's head—Naruto's father. A new wave of shame passed over Kakashi.

"I'm so sorry Naruto." The words felt inadequate even as he was saying them.

"I'm not. I mean I am sad that they're gone, but not sad for what they did. They sacrificed their lives for me and the rest of the village. It's an honour to be their son. Doing something that would not bring us happiness would be disrespectful to their memory. We owe it to our fallen family and friends to find happiness." Naruto paused, still pensive. "I'm older than they ever got to be, you know. I want to experience the things that they didn't get a chance to. And you should too."

Kakashi contemplated what Naruto expressed. There was a lot of weight behind Naruto's words and he had to think it through. There were so many scary possibilities, none of which felt natural for him.

"I don't know how to do this."

Naruto chuckled lightly. "Ask her. Sakura is vocal enough to let you know what she wants."

"You're not going to threaten me with bodily harm if I hurt her?" Kakashi asked half sarcastically, half truthfully.

Naruto's booming laugh startled him and his son a little—but thankfully Boruto didn't wake up, just shifted his head to Naruto's other shoulder.

"It's not me that you have to worry about. It's Sakura! She would destroy you if you piss her off. But I don't think it'll come to that. Once she's made her mind up about stuff like this, she's not going to change it. I think you two are actually good for each other."

Kakashi flopped back onto the dirt, sending another wave of pain through his shoulder as he rested against the hard ground. He thought about what would happen to him if he truly upset Sakura. "Fuck."

"I'll try to warn her against killing you if it comes down to it, but you know her. Her temper is fierce. And you know I have kids now, so... yeah. Don't do anything stupid. I don't want to get caught at the wrong end of her fists."

Kakashi didn't feel reassured at all with his survival chances if he was to anger her again but at least he felt good that Naruto had accepted their relationship so easily. Would others be as easy to convince?

"I should get back to Hinata. I don't like leaving her by herself for so long with the baby." Naruto stood and brushed the dirt off his pants and robes.

He looked up to the blond man. He was standing in such a way that the sun was setting behind him, alighting him, making him seem ethereal. "When did you get so smart, Naruto?"

"They don't call it Sage Mode for nothing. I've picked up a few things along the way," Naruto grinned at him. "Good night, Kakashi. You should clear things up with her tonight. Don't let this go on for another day, make things right." With that, he turned and walked away.

Kakashi was both humbled and confused by their conversation. Maybe Sakura was as confused as he was. Or maybe she was still truly mad at him—he wouldn't know until he confronted her and cleared the air. The very thought of doing that, of course, made his heart leap into his chest and butterflies flutter in his stomach.

What if she was done with him?

His mind jumped from one idea to another without any semblance of order. The scary reality of it was that he was only working with half of the story—only his half, and not hers.

There were so many ways that this could go wrong and both of them could get hurt. But there was a chance that this could go well. The question came down to what did he want and where did he see things going between them. He didn't think of himself as spouse material, but maybe he hadn't been before her.

He couldn't deny how much happier he's been the past few months. And the peace he felt while in her presence. It helped keep his demons at bay. But was that her responsibility?

Was all of this worth the risk?

Did he have the sole choice in all of this?

"Fuck," he repeated to no one in particular. Too many questions with no answers.

* * *

Sakura had finally found out where Kakashi was after running into Genma. He directed her to the Hokage's mountain and she immediately headed that way. Along the mountain's pathway she had bumped into Naruto. His son was sleeping peacefully on his back as he slowly walked home.

"Kakashi is waiting for you at the top. Try to be easy on him."

"I will. I'm not here to fight," she explained as she walked by. She briefly put a hand on his shoulder and squeezed. "Thank you, Naruto."

The pathway was winding and had dense brush on either side until the peak, where it opened up. It made her think of the journey she and Kakashi had been on . Winding and dense with emotions. She couldn't help but wonder if their relationship would mimic this path and finally open up. It was what she wanted, but was it what he wanted too? Especially with how they left things when they last parted.

Seeing his figure flat on the ground, she swallowed the build up of tension that was caught in her throat. Everything that her friends had told her, still filtered through her mind. She had to make things right between them, if nothing else.

"Kakashi?" she called out to him. "What are you doing on the ground? Are you okay?"

She went to his side and kneeled down besides him. His eyes were still closed, even though she could easily tell that he was awake. As she continued to look down athim, some of her hair slipped and hung above his face.

He opened his eyes and decided to risk it as he slowly reached up to tuck her hair behind her ear with his good hand.

"Hi," he started. Kakashi found it nearly impossible to keep himself from reaching out to touch her. Neither could he stop looking at her. Her eyes were so bright and curious. He stared pensively into her bright green eyes. Did he deserve her? His hand continued to rest on the side of her face, with his fingers brushing against her pulse on her neck. It hammered against her warm skin.

"Are you okay?" she repeated once more.

"I am now," he sighed.

Sakura watched the emotions pass through his charcoal eyes, but she wasn't satisfied with seeing only his eyes. She reached down and placed her hands gently along the edges of his mask, waiting for permission. She knew he wouldn't deny her this, even if there were still words left unspoken between them. He closed his eyes once more, and nodded his head slightly.

Pulling down his mask was akin to stripping him naked, but he still allowed her to bare him in this way. Carefully pulling the fabric down, uncovering his cheeks, his perfect nose, down past his masculine lips, revealing the small mole under his mouth, and finally slipping his mask past his chin. Every time she saw him, it took her breath away. She allowed her fingers to feather across his bare lips, unsure of what type of reaction she'd get. He lazily opened his eyes once more and watched her study his face.

Kakashi thought about what Naruto had said, and he was right: her emotions were clearly written on her face. How had he not noticed it before? She was an open book, if only he had taken a moment to look.

It was now or never.

He opened his mouth to confess his secret, but she spoke first.

"Kakashi, I'm sorry." Her eyes drifted downwards as she could no longer take the intensity of his gaze. "I know I overreacted, and I treated you unfairly, and I'm sorry. I shouldn't have behaved like that."

He saw her eyes close right as they began to fill with tears. It unsettled his heart to see her cry because of him. Slowly he shifted his hand until he lifted her head so that they were eye to eye once more.

"Sakura, open your eyes."

She shook her head no.

Leaning forward until his face was a breath away from hers he asked again. "Sakura, please?" he whispered, shifting close enough to softly press his lips to her closed eyes. "For me, please?"

Her breath hitched at his actions. She couldn't deny him any longer.

Slowly she opened her eyes and saw how close his face was to hers. He still held her face in place and didn't allow her to pull back.

"I'm sorry too, Sakura. I acted like an idiot and it was dangerous to be like that on a mission. I don't want to give you an excuse, but men in love tend to do stupid things."

Shock blazed through Sakura as she registered his words. Her emotions jumped from stunned, to joy, to nervousness, to elation, and then back to shock once more. She started falling backwards until she reached out to place a hand on each of his shoulders to steady herself.

Kakashi gasped as sharp pain seared through him. He jerked out of her reach and fell back to the ground, grunting once more.

"What?! What's wrong?"

Kakashi sucked in a deep breath and cradled his left arm.

"My arm has been hurting for a few days, but it's okay. Just give me a second," he winced as he pressed into the unforgiving ground.

"Don't be silly. Let me take a look," she stuttered, still stunned by what he had let slip.

She reached out to the shoulder he was clutching with a careful hand and hovered over it. Even as she went about her task, her mind was racing. He had said men in love and he was speaking about his own actions. To her.

He was in love. With her.

It felt like she could feel her heartbeat through her whole body. It was one of the happiest moments she's had in a long time, but at the same time she was so confused.

As her mind wandered, her hand began to glow green as she quickly identified the issue. His humerus was badly bruised and lightly sprained.

"Kakashi, how long have you had this injury?" she asked curiously.

"Oh, about since when we got home from the mission," he explained nonchalantly.

Sakura sighed loudly as guilt ate away at her. She knew she was the cause behind his injury and that didn't sit well. Especially since the chat with her friends had convinced her that she had overreacted. None of this sat well.

"Kakashi, your arm is badly sprained. I'm sure it's from when I kicked you," Sakura said distressingly. "I'm so sorry, Kakashi. But why didn't you go get it checked out?" she demanded. Her remorse quickly changed into irritation.

"Because I didn't think it was that bad," Kakashi said as he watched her closely. He always found it fascinating to watch her face since her emotions were so clear on her face. Right now he could see that she was both angry at him and feeling guilt over his injury. And he didn't want that—he wanted to reassure her that he didn't blame her and that he wasn't upset. So to make sure he had her attention, he scooped her up with his good arm and pulled her into his lap and forced her eyes to meet his.

"Sakura, it's okay," he said as he kissed her forehead. "I know you'll fix me up."

"But—no. No, Kakashi. It's wrong. I shouldn't have reacted like that, and I certainly shouldn't have kicked you. It was borderline abusive, can't you see that?" she demanded as her anger started to get stronger and stronger. Her hands clenched into tight fists as she pulled her head away from him. He still had a good hold on her hip which stopped her from completely removing herself from his lap. Needing to get her attention, he squeezed her hip tightly.

"You're wrong about that Sakura. We were communicating. We're shinobi, so we express ourselves differently than 'normal' people. I could have blocked or evaded your kick if I had really wanted to. But I didn't . I wanted to communicate with you. I won't hold it against you that you expressed your justifiable anger like that." He held her against himself again, making sure he still had her attention. "You're not perfect, and neither am I. Do you hold that against me?"

"No, of course not."

"Good. Then I don't either," he said as he pressed his lips against her nose. "But I really would appreciate it if you would finish healing my arm."

Her posture deflated a little when she realised he wasn't going to let her win this argument. She knew that she could be stubborn and she also knew that he could be just as stubborn when he wanted to. It drove her insane when he dug his heels in. Especially now.

Her hand glowed brighter as she pushed more healing chakra into his injury. Sakura was startled slightly when he pushed his head onto her shoulder and rested it there. She could feel every little puff of breath against her neck, especially when Kakashi sighed loudly when she finished healing his shoulder.

"God's, that feels so much better," he murmured into her neck. "Thank you, Sakura. Now I can move it without any pain." He tested out his arm by wrapping it around her and keeping her pressed snugly into his body.

A shiver ran up her spine as his warm lips pressed against her pulse.

"Mmmm... Sakura, your heart is racing. Is something bothering you?" he asked teasingly. His lips still pressed into her neck. "I like this. I can feel your heart beating against my lips and I can hear every hitch of your breath. Not to mention that you smell so good. I wonder what would happen if I told you again."

"Tell me what?" she shuddered.

"That I love you."

Sakura jerked her head back to stare him in his eyes. She could feel her face flush with shyness. There was a bit of a twinkle in his eyes showing her that even though he was teasing her, he meant it.

"Kakashi..." she started.

One of his hands crawled up her neck and pushed into her hair. He held her head in place as he pressed his lips against hers over and over. "Are you going to fess up?" he murmured as he kissed the corner of her mouth. He thought that maybe if he gave her a bit of a push, she'd come clean. "Come on, Sakura. Stop lying to yourself and to me. Tell me that you love me too."

She let her head fall back into his hand as he covered her neck with more hot kisses. "Why? So you can tease me?"

"No. So you can make my dreams come true," he whispered to her as his mouth found the rim of her ear.

Sakura took a deep breath, knowing that everything was about to change between them. But she wanted him to know—needed him to know.

"Yes, Kakashi," she mewled. "Yes, Kakashi, I'm in love with you," she breathed out slowly.

His own breath caught in his throat. He never thought that he'd hear those words said to him. And now the woman he loved, loved him back.

His heart soared and he couldn't stop smiling.

It was the most amazing feeling in the world to feel loved and love back in equal measures.

"Good," he laughed. He laid back onto the ground and pulled her with him, keeping her mouth on his.

He'd never get enough of this.

Or of her.

"How long have you known for?" he teased. He pressed his nose into her hair and kissed her temple.

"For weeks." Sighing in bliss, she turned to lightly press her nose to just under his jaw while she relaxed on top of him.

"Weeks, huh?" he asked as he took her hand in his and brought it up to his lips. He kissed each finger gently, then let their joined hands rest on his chest. They could both feel his strong heartbeat through his thick vest and hot skin.

Feeling her cheeks burn, she pushed her face further into his neck. "I've liked you for almost a year," she admitted quietly.

"Oh? Is that so? So it's your fault that I fell hopelessly in love with you?"

"If you say so. I'm too tired to argue with you anymore."

"Good, because I think I'll keep you here a little longer. You fit perfectly in my arms, you know."

His hand briefly tightened on hers, showing her that he really loved her and that this isn't just a figment of her imagination.

Laying there with him like this was perfect. Even as his stomach growled at them, it was still perfect.

Kakashi chuckled lightly. "I guess my plan of keeping you here until the stars come out might not work out." His sigh sounded both irritated and content, which made Sakura giggle. "I'm hungry and gods know how you're standing the smell of me."

"I wasn't going to say anything, but now that you've mentioned it, you could use a shower," she said as she pushed herself up and hovered over him.

Catching his eyes with hers, she was awed by how much love she saw in them. There was such an intensity to his gaze that it was startling. Sakura felt a brief flash of shyness and broke eye contact with him.

"Please don't look away. I love looking into your gorgeous eyes. It's like a window into your desires, and I want to know about everything you want."

"Kakashi... if you keep talking like that, I'm never going to stop blushing," she moaned as she dropped her head to his chest.

"That's not such a bad thing, is it? I love seeing your face covered by a beautiful blush. And I know all the best ways to make your whole body blush," he mused as his voice dropped to a low rumble.

"Kakashi," she repeated once more. "You make me dizzy."

"Good!" he laughed as his hold tightened on her briefly. "Hang on," he instructed as his hands released her back in order to perform a series of seals. With a poof, they were transported away from the mountain top and to her home.

"There. Now we're someplace a little more private." He smirked as he relaxed in the middle of her living room floor.

"Just when did you mark my place?" she asked as she sat up on his stomach and looked down at him.

"Oh, you know, sometime after you visited me when I was acting Hokage."

Sakura's face flushed a deep red once again. "You've got to be nice to me and not tease me anymore, or I won't feed you."

"Is that so?" Kakashi's gaze shifted to her thighs that straddled his torso and the skin that peeked out from under her dress. He ran his gloved hands up her muscular legs until his fingers slipped under her dress. "Oh I can be _real_ nice, especially to the woman I love," he countered as he pulled himself into a sitting position.

And before she could utter another word, his hands drifted around to her butt and pulled her tightly against him. He captured her lips in a hot kiss.

Holding her tightly against his body, he let himself fall into her. "Is it normal that I want the world to know that I love you?" he asked as he kissed along her jaw and down her throat. His lips found their way along her warm silky soft skin to the strap holding up her dress.

With his teeth he pulled it off her shoulder and swept his lips across her collarbone, eliciting all sorts of noises from her. Each of them made him smile in response.

Sakura's mind was dizzy with lust. His mouth was searing hot trails across her skin. She still couldn't believe that he loved her. It was something that she never thought possible. Especially with Kakashi.

But now she knew. And she was filled with such elation, such joy that she was lost in all things him.

At least until his stomach grumbled again.

"I can't believe I'm about to say this, but I think I want food more than you," he teased her.

"And I think I want you to shower," she mocked back at him.

"Ohh, so you want me all clean before you have your way with me? Or are you going to join me in the shower? You could wash my back and I could wash yours." His lips kept busy kissing and brushing across anything he could reach.

She played with the soft hairs at the nape of his neck, neither stopping or encouraging his mouth. "You and your lips are sinful and dangerous and distracting. You go shower and I'll figure out dinner."

"I guess that's fine, but I'll miss you." He nuzzled her neck and began to stand up, keeping his hands on her ass. As he got to his feet, he lifted her with him. He made sure to keep her legs wrapped around his waist as he meandered to her bathroom.

"If you want to get fed, you're going to have to put me down, you know."

"I'm not ready to let you go just yet," he said as he took her lips hungrily once more.

As he reached her bathroom, he groped for the light while continuing to occupy her mouth with his own. He was greedy for every part of her—everything about her was addictive, and he couldn't stop himself from wanting it all.

Kakashi enjoyed each time he could get her to gasp and moan—especially when she'd whisper and moan his name. Each sigh and whisper he could extort from her made him burn with lust and pride. Before the night was done, he'd made sure that she'd never think about another man for the rest of her life.

Setting her down on the counter allowed his hands to wander across her body. When she pulled her mouth away from his, and attempted to persuade him to let her go, he just moved to her neck and feasted there.

"I don't think I'm going to be able to get enough of you tonight. Are you sure I can't convince you to join me in the shower?" He had already undone his vest and was in the process of letting it slip off his shoulders.

"Kakashi! You're relentless! Let me go so you can shower and then join me for dinner." She was laughing and tilting her head back which only gave him more area to cover with heated kisses.

"Can you blame me?" he asked as he pulled back and stared into her eyes. "Can you blame a man in love?"

Sakura's face bloomed into another deep blush.

"I could watch you blush everyday for the rest of my life and call it a life well lived," he teased her with a peck to her nose.

He stood back up and reached for his shirts and quickly pulled them over his head. Even he couldn't stand the smell of them as he dropped them onto her floor.

When he bared his chest to her, all she wanted to do was reach out and touch him. But just as she was about to he caught her hands and brought them to his lips.

"Okay, now that my shirt is off, I can tell how bad I smell, and since you're not going to shower with me, I suppose I'll just have to do it alone."

She smiled up at him. "Good, because we both need food. I'll order some take out and pick it up. So take your time." Sakura hopped down from the counter. "Don't forget to put your dirty clothes into the wash and start it up," she said as she pecked him on the cheek and left the washroom.

Kakashi stared after her as she left, thinking that he could have these kinds of moments for the rest of his life. Spending the rest of his life with her would be a dream come true for him. And it was something he was going to do everything in his power to turn into reality.

* * *

Please be kind and leave me a nice review! They help keep me going when my mind starts being mean to me. Thank you!


	18. Something Promising

Thank you so much to **Sarcastic-Mommy** for being such a wonderful beta! And Thank you so much to all the people who reviewed! I can't say this enough, but your support is so encouraging and helpful to me! Your sweet words in your reviews really help keep me going! I seriously read each one at least a dozen times! THANK YOU!

Enjoy!!!

Oh yeah, so there's smut in this chapter, **NO UNDERAGE READERS PLEASE!**

* * *

Sakura was just shutting the door when she heard the shower turn off. She had made a quick decision for their dinner. Ramen was nothing fancy, but it was comfort food, it was fast and it was easily brought home. She poured the noodles and broth in two bowls and placed them on her table with a bottle of sake and two cups.

When she heard the door to the bathroom open, she glanced out of the corner of her eye as he made an appearance.

He was wearing just a towel slung low on his hips.

Swallowing hard, she couldn't help but stare.

"I hope you don't mind me eating dinner like this. With all of my clothes in the wash, I don't have anything to wear, and I don't think you have anything here that'll fit me."

Trying her best to hide the blush that burned her cheeks once more, she turned around, grabbed a glass and filled it from the tap. She drank it quickly when she felt him come up behind her.

Droplets of cool water dripped off of his soaking wet hair and rolled down her back, beneath her dress. It froze her in her place while more heat spread across her body.

"I also had to use your razor to shave. I didn't think you'd mind that either," he confessed as he dragged his smooth cheek across her bare shoulder. "I didn't think you'd enjoy my stubble against your skin."

Kakashi smiled to himself as he felt her shiver under his touch. She was all that he could think about.

"You've got to stop doing that, Kakashi," she insisted as another shiver rolled through her. She knew what the night was building up to, and she couldn't wait. It was all she could think about. But his teasing was going to cause her face to be constantly blushing.

"No. I'm enjoying this way too much. And I've got such a thirst for you. It's like only I know this secret about you and me, and it makes me feel powerful."

"Sorry to burst your bubble, but I talked about us to my friends earlier, I needed their input and they helped me out," she revealed.

"Mmm... that's okay. Naruto came to me earlier. He knows too."

"I guess it was inevitable that more people would eventually find out. What did he say?" She moved to the table and sat down.

He joined her, sitting across from her. Watching her attentively, he slowly stretched out his legs on either side of hers—his desire to be in constant contact with her overwhelmed him easily. He couldn't wait to fill his belly so he could move onto dessert.

"He's known about it since almost the beginning. Apparently, he found out while in Sage Mode. He was surprisingly calm about it. Encouraging in fact." He reached out with one hand and took her smaller one into his.

Gently he brushed his thumb across her knuckles, then laced her fingers with his. His large calloused hand dwarfed her petite one. It was so soft, small and warm—and capable of so much.

"That's good, I suppose. One less thing we have to worry about disclosing." She squeezed his hand back reassuringly. She picked at her dinner not exactly sure what they could talk about.

Her nerves filled her stomach with butterflies and made her hands slightly tremble—not out of fear, but out of anticipation. All she wanted to do was be near him, be held by him. Her breath quickened as her thoughts filled her with a strong desire for him.

Kakashi ate his dinner slowly. Savoring every bite. He heard each time her breathing altered, and he smirked to himself as he saw various shades of her blush spread across her cheeks and even extending to her neck and ears. It was easy to tell that she was nervous—he was too. How could he not be nervous as well? However, he wasn't about to let that stop him.

He was looking forward to being with her as more than just a lover—but as a man who loved her.

Squeezing her hand gently, he caught her eyes and grinned at her. "So, Sakura. You've wined me. You've dined me. And you have me hostage, since I have no clothes left to change into, and I'm sure you don't want me naked and outside. What are your plans for me?"

Sakura opened and closed her mouth, unable to come back with an answer for him. "Dammit Kakashi! Is it your goal to make me more nervous than I already am?" she asked with a huff as she gathered her bowls and brought them to the sink.

Once more, she felt him come up behind her. He circled his arms around her waist and bent his head down to hers.

"Of course not, Sakura. I'm nervous too. I have no experience with relationships, so I'm not good at this. I never thought I would have a woman who loves and wants me as much as I want them. And I want every part of you." Placing soft kisses along her shoulder and neck, he held her tightly against himself. "I'm terrified of letting you go right now, Sakura."

Turning in his embrace, she wrapped her arms around his neck and pressed into him. She enjoyed the way his arms tightened around her, keeping her firmly against his nearly naked body.

"Kakashi, you're a wonderful, good man. How could I not want you?"

"I don't need someone who sees the good in me. I need someone who sees the bad and still wants me."

"Trust me when I say I want all of you. I love all of you, Kakashi."

"Even though you just said it, it's still hard to believe that you love me," he whispered against her skin.

Gathering all of her courage, she placed her hands on either side of his face and made sure his eyes were fixed on hers.

"I love you, Kakashi," she repeated firmly.

She grinned as a blush began to spread across his cheeks. She definitely saw the appeal in watching the other turn scarlet.

"Speaking of blushes," she teased, her thumb brushing across his cheekbones and along his scar.

Kakashi chuckled, remembering his promise. He reached down and picked her up once again, allowing her legs to circle his almost naked hips. "Time to keep my word and make your whole body blush," he promised once more.

"Good, because I've missed you dearly and I'm tired of waiting." She claimed his lips as he moved them towards her bedroom.

Not wanting to delay what she sorely needed, she grasped the edges of her dress, and pulled it over her head, leaving it on the floor. With an expert flick of his talented hands, Kakashi made quick work of her bra, leaving it too on the floor on their way to her bedroom.

Keeping one hand at the small of her back, his other cupped her breast and brought his mouth to its peak.

"God's, I've missed the taste of your skin, the heat of your body and the sounds of your moans. And I will be making you moan all night long," he promised as he switched to her other breast.

After another few steps, they had made it to her bedroom and then to her bed.

Sakura was already caught up in the delirium when he sat them down on the edge of her bed. Straddling his thighs, she rocked in his lap while his mouth left little marks and love bites across her chest. She pulled herself away from his hungry mouth and off his lap, hoping to get him to pause in his attentions.

"What? What's wrong?" he asked deliriously.

"Lift your hips. I want this annoying towel off your body," she growled as she tugged at it roughly.

"Whatever you say, my love." He smiled and chuckled at her voracious need to feel his skin against hers. "But turnabout is fair play. I want you just as naked as I am."

Kakashi grabbed her hips and moved her to stand before him, and before she could complain, he stood up as well. Without hesitation, Sakura reached out and pulled on the towel, letting it fall to his feet.

She grinned and took a deep breath as she saw his member standing proudly before her. Letting her hands run down his chest, abs and following that trail of silver hair between his belly button and cock, she smiled as she wrapped her fingers around his girth. Sakura pumped the full length of it, enjoying the way his breath caught in his throat.

"Sakura," Kakashi moaned as her hand reached the head of his cock and lightly brushed it with her fingers. "I want you naked too."

He groaned loudly as she pumped him gently, savouring her control over him. His pride as a man with exceptional prowess in bed stopped him from completely giving in to her incessant demands, so that he could draw out the night as long as possible.

"My turn."

And before she knew it, his cock slipped from her hand, her underwear was pooled around her ankles and his hot mouth feasted on her center. His hands gripped her ass and held her in place as his tongue found her pearl and made her cry out.

"Mmmm AAhhh! Kakashi!" Her hands fell into his soft damp hair and held him in place. "Oh my! That feels so good! Gods, I'm so close. Please don't stop."

"Mmm... I don't plan on stopping until you reach your first of many peaks."

"Oh sweet mother of—" Sakura moaned as Kakashi put his mouth back over her core and slipped a finger in her.

Moments later her hands tightened in his hair as she groaned loudly. He felt her legs begin to quake as her breathing came out in sharp pants.

"That's it, Sakura. Come for me," he whispered into her hot skin as she began to crumble against him.

Before she could completely fall, he scooped her up into his arms, holding her close to his chest, and to his heart. Slowly he moved to the center of the bed and laid down with her resting on his torso. Feeling her breathing heavily, while laying half dazed on him, filled him with male smugness.

"Mmm, Kakashi," she breathed as she nuzzled into his neck. "I've missed that. And you."

"You're not the only one. I've missed the taste of you, the sound of your moans and the trembling of your body as you find your peak." Kakashi brushed a hand down her side. "It's a powerful feeling, being with you."

He adjusted his head, so that he could kiss the top of hers, feeling her heartbeat settle as they relaxed together.

"Kakashi, I have a question."

"What is it?"

"Why do you usually stop me from playing with you?"

Kakashi chuckled. "I guess it's selfish of me, but I enjoy seeing you lose yourself because of what I do to you."

"You know that's not really being selfish. Not when you're making me feel so good. But you're going to have to start letting me have my fun too, you know."

"Well then, I'm all yours, to do with as you please," he stated as he splayed his arms out to his sides and smiled at her.

Sakura hummed to herself and relaxed into his chest. "In a bit. You made me feel weak, but next time you're going to let me continue whatever I start."

"That sounds wonderful to me," Kakashi chuckled as he hugged her once more to his body. "I definitely like that I made you feel weak."

Sakura gently hit his chest in mock chastisement. "You love to tease me, don't you?"

"Yes and no. I love you. _And_ I enjoy teasing you, since it's so much fun to get a rise out of you."

"Is that all?" she asked as she drew sensual circles around his nipple with her fingertip. Her lips found the delicate skin just below his ear and trailed kisses down his body. His breath quickened and his body shuddered each time she found a sensitive spot on him.

The torture was exquisite as he was powerless to her will. Her stimulation made him feverish with desire, but she didn't let up. She continued until her hot mouth encased his cock.

"Sakura," he growled. His hands gripped at her sheets, nearly tearing them with every sweep and swirl of her tongue. "Sakura, you can't keep doing that to me, you need to stop otherwise I'm going to come. And I only want to do that deep inside of you."

Kakashi reached blindly for her head, as she continued to control the situation and him. Threading his fingers through her hair, he gently pulled her off of him.

"See, you're stopping me from playing again," she pouted as her tongue stretched out and licked up his length once more.

"You know there's other ways for you to play with me."

'"You mean like slipping you inside and riding you?" she said as she grabbed the base of his cock and positioned herself over him. Slowly she pressed down his length allowing him to enter her and had them both moaning out.

Not being able to resist, he sat up and curled his legs beneath her and his arms around her back to keep her supported. Feeling the intimacy of the position, Sakura coiled her legs around him as well and slowly began to undulate her hips.

Their hands slowly glided across the other's body as they enjoyed their loving embrace. Lips floated along any stretch of skin they could reach, while occasionally meeting for a passionate tangle.

His heart leapt against hers. Each excruciating slow, hesitant stroke of her body was maddening, but wonderful. Her mouth was so soft, so giving, so addictive. His need and love for her felt like a beast clawing inside of him. Afraid he'd frighten her he told himself to calm down as he pressed his lips to the curve of her neck, until he settled once more. Everytime she drew herself up, he felt like he was losing a part of himself until she eased down on him again.

Kakashi wanted this to go on forever.

"Sakura," he moaned into her sweaty skin. She rose up over him and he feasted on the flesh he could reach. Kissing and nipping, marking her as his.

He could feel that he was close, so close to the edge, but he wasn't about to go first. Not until she came again.

Sakura felt like she was floating. Tangled in the sensations of making love with Kakashi. She heard him groan her name, but she was too breathless to answer back. It felt like he was consuming her—inside and out—and she wanted nothing more than to be devoured by him. She knew she was only moments away from sweet release and he continued to urge her towards that peak.

Feeling as though she was close to unravelling, she tightly curled herself around him.

"Kakashi, I'm so close." Her head drifted and rested on his strong shoulder allowing him to take charge.

He held her firmly against his body as he surged into her, beckoning her to find her release once more.

And when she did it was electric. Her whole body was alight as bolts of lightning coursed through her bringing her wave after wave of pleasure.

When he felt her body contract around his, his hands held her tightly as she shivered and writhed. He watched as her mouth opened, but nothing came out.

Pressing his lips to hers, he drank in her voiceless moans, savouring the taste of her.

Her body continued to slake and quiver around him, edging him towards his own release, but it was her lovingly whispering his name, that pushed his own body over the edge.

With one last thrust into her warmth, he felt himself unravel. His head fell onto her shoulder and he sighed as he felt himself empty into her.

Sakura leaned back, allowing his head to slip off her shoulder and come to rest over her heart. Her fingers combed through his sweaty hair, holding him against her. She knew that he reached his peak by the sound of his moans. She knew him well enough to know that.

Loving the way he held on to her, as if he was afraid to let go. She held onto him tightly, showing that she wasn't going anywhere and there was nothing to fear.

This was making love, she thought.

She watched as his chest expanded with each desperate gasp of air. How could she have mistaken this kind of relationship with any other? The power, the intimacy and the thrill of being in love with Kakashi was so fulfilling.

When he finally raised his head to meet her eyes, he saw the love she held for him and it filled his heart.

"Mmm... Sakura, you're so beautiful like that," he mused as he rested his forehead against hers. "Flush and sweaty and trembling, lips reddened from my kisses and gasping for air—you're my dream come true."

Sakura laughed quietly as she took a deep breath. "I can still feel your legs shuddering beneath me. You're just as spent as me, Kakashi, don't deny it."

"Never. You wore me out," he confessed as he fell back onto the bed, bringing her with him.

She sighed as she slackened against his chest. Both of their bodies were still coming down from the high of their lovemaking.

Adjusting herself until she was laying down the length of him, she relaxed as her body slowly calmed and came down from the high. She sighed heartfully when Kakashi started gently running his hand up and down her back.

"Mmm... that feels good."

" _You_ feel good," he countered as he shifted. He moved his hands to her hips, holding her tight and pushed deeper into her once again. "So good."

Sakura shuddered and her breath caught in her throat. "We need sleep. At least a nap before another round."

"That sounds good. Sleep with you, in you, wrapped around you, breathing you in. Just perfect to me." He took her hand, brought it up to his mouth, kissed her palm and then let their combined hands cup his cheek.

Sighing contentedly at the pleasure he brought her, just by being with him, her heart felt full. Full of love and happiness.

They slept on and off throughout the night, wrapped up in each other the whole time. And when they woke, they took each other over and over again, each of them trying to express their feelings for the other through their bodies, because words didn't seem like they'd be enough.

When dawn approached, Sakura found herself waking up slowly, once more wrapped in Kakashi's arms. Throughout the night he had seemed so reluctant to let her go. It showed her how much their fight had affected him.

Despite their confessions of love, they would have to work at building up their trust again. It would take time. Time she'd happily spend with him.

She craned her head back to look at his sleeping face. His mouth was open a little and his nose twitched as the breeze from the open window blew across their warm bodies. It shifted his hair to tickle his nose, but it felt nice against her bare back. Sakura smiled as she spied another involuntary movement of his nose. Carefully reaching up, she tried to shift his soft locks away from his nose, but they kept falling back.

"It's too long," he muttered, coming awake.

Without opening his eyes, he turned and pressed his face into her neck. Slinging one leg over her hips, he circled himself around her completely.

Sakura snickered as he rubbed his itchy nose against her jaw. "Better?"

"Much. I'll trim it before tonight," he told her.

"Tonight?" she questioned.

"Oh? Didn't I mention? I know you have the day off. I want to take you out to dinner."

"Like a date? In public?" Sakura was curious to see where his mind was going.

"Yes. It's past time I took you out for a proper date."

"Oohh! Does that include wearing something nice?"

"Yes, definitely some sort of sexy little black dress would be a good idea," he said as he planted little kisses down her neck.

"I can do that. But only if you do one thing for me?"

"Anything," he replied without hesitating.

"Don't cut your hair too short. I like it long enough to grab it," she whispered into his ear, as her lips curled around its rim and pulled at it lightly.

Kakashi groaned loudly, enjoying her more demanding and playful side.

"As much as I want you to ride me until tonight, I need more sustenance, love."

Sakura laughed, letting go of his ear and rolling onto her back. The breeze filtered through her window once more, cooling her bare chest, making her nipples harden while Kakashi watched.

"That's distracting, Sakura."

Laughing again, she turned her head towards him. "It's not something I can stop. Go get your own food. I'm not hungry yet."

She curled onto her side, bringing the blanket up to her chin, and attempted to go back to sleep. The bed shifted as Kakashi sat up and crawled over her, stopping briefly to softly kiss her shoulder.

"Sleep then. I'll take care of everything," he murmured and left her to rest.

She couldn't help but peek one eye open and watched as he left her room. Completely naked. Smiling to herself, she closed her eyes once more.

She wasn't sure how long it had been after he left her room, but she could smell food. And suddenly she was ravenous.

"Sakura, wake up. I've brought breakfast." He said it so quietly, but she was wide awake.

"Mmmm?" Stretching her arms over her head as Kakashi sat on the edge of the bed. She blinked one eye open and saw that he had a tray of food in his hands.

As she breathed in the scents that started permeating the room she woke up fully.

"That smells delicious Kakashi!" she said as she continued to stretch her tight muscles. "What have you made?"

"Miso soup, onigiri, some grilled chicken and you had some pickled radishes."

"Sounds like a feast! That didn't take you too long!"

"You've been asleep for almost two hours, since I crawled out."

"Oh! I hadn't realized I've slept that long."

"I guess I wore you out," he teased her.

She reached out a hand and placed it on his thigh. "I guess you did. Join me?" she asked as she shifted to sit up with her back against the wall.

"Gladly."

She held the tray for him as he crawled back into bed and sat beside her. He brought the covers up just to cover his naked lap, as he nestled beside her, and placed an arm over her shoulder. There was something so perfect about spending a morning like this: naked breakfast in bed with a freshly showered Kakashi and cuddled into his side. Turning her head she kissed his shoulder just because she could.

Looking down at the tray, Sakura saw that it was loaded with more than enough food for the both of them. Keeping it on her lap they slowly nibbled at the feast Kakashi had prepared.

"Mmm... Kakashi! This is so good!" she gushed as she tried some of the chicken. "When did you learn to cook?"

Kakashi leaned over and kissed her pink tresses. "A long time ago."

"Well, you're very good. I think I might try to convince you to do this more often," she teased as she munched on an onigiri. "I didn't even know I had the ingredients to make this!"

"I'll happily cook breakfast in bed for you whenever you want—you only have to ask," he replied as he cupped her head and turned it towards him to place a quick peck on her lips. "But I think you should get groceries for next time. Your cupboards were a little bare, so it was a trial, but I'm resourceful when I need to be."

"Well I haven't had a chance to go out since we got back, but I'll take care of it today." She paused as she brought the soup to her lips. Butterflies suddenly took over her stomach. She looked up to his face and into his charcoal eyes, second guessing herself. She didn't know what their relationship status was or what he was okay with.

Kakashi immediately noticed the change in her demeanor.

"What is it Sakura?" he asked softly.

"I don't know what we are. I don't know what to expect, or what you want. And I don't know—"

"Sakura, I love you. And I don't know how to do this either, but I want to do whatever I can to keep you here by my side and happy, because being with you makes me happy."

Sakura smiled brightly at him. "I think you're better at this than I am. You know just what to say when I start getting stuck in my own head. Thank you, Kakashi." She placed a hand on his chest and leaned over and kissed him on the chin. "Want to come shopping with me? Then you can point out what you like and what you need to cook me breakfast," she teased.

"I'd like that. But I still don't have dry clothes and I don't think you want me walking around naked," he teased her back.

"You oaf, go turn the dryer on then."

"But I like being naked with you," he defended himself as he kissed her on her temple. "I think you secretly like it too. I saw you staring at my ass when I walked out earlier, and I know you've enjoyed the rest of me as much as I've enjoyed you."

"I think you're insatiable. I need to finish eating and start the day."

Kakashi chuckled at her. "I think that's a two-way street, because I seem to remember you being just as ravenous as me. You're the one who woke me up twice last night, already reaching for me when I was fast asleep," he commented dryly. With a smirk, he raised a knee, allowing the blanket to slip down his waist, exposing the top of his patch of silver hair at the base of his cock. Seeing her eyes looking there, drinking him in, he leaned over and whispered to her. "Why don't you finish eating breakfast quickly, while I put my clothes in the dryer? We can have another hour-long quickie and then go out shopping."

"Kakashi, you know the definition of a quickie, is quick, right? Not an hour long." But he was already getting up and leaving her bed to put his clothes in the dryer.

"Not in my books!" he called out from the hallway.

Sakura was just about to take another bite of some food when she heard a light tapping on her windows. Looking over she saw one of the messenger birds from the hospital. She had truly wished for a day off, but as a senior medic, she was nearly always on call. Taking one last bite of her special breakfast, she put everything on the tray and left the bed to start getting ready. She had already slipped her underwear on and was just doing up her bra when Kakashi walked back in.

"Thinking about giving me a strip tease?" he came up behind her and started to pull down the strap on her bra. "While I appreciate the thought, I can assure you, it's unnecessary."

"I've been called into the hospital. I don't know for what, but it must be an emergency since they know I'm supposed to be off for a few days. I'm sorry, but I've got to go and see what it is." She continued to grab her clothes and dress.

She turned around and saw how disappointed Kakashi looked. He had sat down on the edge of her bed, watching her.

Taking a step closer to him, she cupped his face and tilted his head up, capturing his lips in a soft kiss.

"I'm truly sorry, Kakashi. I was looking forward to spending the whole day with you, but I can't ignore this." She kissed his lips once more. "And the sooner I leave, the sooner I can come back and spend time with you."

"I know. I'm just pouty because I was looking forward to keeping you all to myself for a bit longer. But I know I have to share." He held her hips, lightly playing with the edges of her panties.

"Yes, you do. Sadly, we can't all be retired Hokages who can make their own schedule. But I love you and I'm looking forward to our date tonight."

"Well, I hope it's nothing big at the hospital, but in case it is, you better get going," he said as he gave her butt a light tap.

"Stay here as long as you want, Kakashi. Stay in bed and sleep longer if you want, I don't mind." She bent down and hugged his head to her chest. She really didn't want to leave him—she felt that their relationship was still at a fragile point, and time together would be what made it stronger. But she still had a job and she couldn't ignore that.

The timing was just horrible. But that was life.

Sakura stepped away and finished getting dressed, and just as she was about to leave her bedroom, Kakashi caught her hand and pulled her into him.

"I love you, Sakura, and I'll see you in a few hours," he declared as he trapped her against his naked body and kissed her hungrily. "Mmm... something to last me until I see you later."

Sakura felt her legs begin to tremble as he continued to take her breath away with his demanding kiss. When he finally pulled back for air, he smiled down at her.

"I'm looking forward to it, Kakashi."

* * *

Wearily climbing the stairs to her apartment, she hoped that Kakashi was still hanging out in her home.

It had been hours since she left him in her bedroom. She'd been called in for an emergency surgery. A ninja had come in from a mission in critical condition with organs close to failing because of poison. Between her and a handful of medics, they were able to remove the poison from his body and save his life. He was out of danger, but he still had a long road to recovery.

So she was proud, but exhausted.

Much of her chakra had been drained, but thankfully, she still had a few days off. Before she left, she advised her peers that she was not to be disturbed for a few days until her chakra came back naturally.

Unlocking her door, she entered her home.

"Kakashi?" she called out, hoping that he'd be waiting for her.

But he didn't answer and she didn't hear anything in her home to indicate that he was here. But she did hear something different. She looked towards her couch and saw Mio resting on the cushions. She wagged her tail for a moment, yawned and decided that sleep was more interesting than an excited Sakura.

She smiled to herself once more, letting the ninken sleep peacefully on her couch.

Walking into the kitchen, she saw it had been tidied, but again, no Kakashi. She guessed he had left. Her shoulders dropped a little.

As her eyes looked around her home, she suddenly noticed a bright bouquet of flowers in a beautiful vase placed on her table with a folded piece of paper at its base.

She never thought Kakashi would be the type of guy to buy her flowers, but this was new for both of them. Not being able to help herself, she placed her nose into the flowers and breathed them in. They smelled heavenly.

There was something about flowers that always brought a big smile to her face. She took another deep breath and reached for the note and flipped it open.

'Sakura, I saw these and hoped you'd love them. I've made reservations for seven o'clock at a restaurant I hope you'll enjoy. I look forward to seeing you in a little black dress.

Love, Your Kakashi'

At the base of the note was the name and location of the restaurant she was to meet him at in just over an hour.

She wanted to shower and take the time to look pretty for him. Their first official date, and this was big. Neither of them were the dating type, but after going at this slightly backwards, they loved each other and were taking the next steps to make it official.

Putting down the note, she walked into the kitchen to get some water when she saw another note on her fridge.

'For the next few breakfasts...' with a henohenomoheji as the signature.

Opening the refrigerator, her jaw dropped. It was filled to the brim with all sorts of foods. Enough to feed several people for a few weeks.

_I guess he's planning on having a few more breakfasts here with me._ The idea had her beaming with happiness. It was hard to keep the smile off of her face at this point.

In her sink she noticed the next surprise: it was filled to the edge with ice and a bottle of champagne left to chill. It looked like Kakashi's plans for after dinner that would bring them back here.

With a bounce to her step she glided to her bedroom where she was met with another surprise from Kakashi. He really was pulling out all the stops.

Another beautiful bouquet of flowers adorned her dresser. Lots of unlit candles covering many of the surfaces. It made her giddy with anticipation for what he obviously had planned.

A perfect romantic dinner followed by an even more special evening afterwards.

Feeling re-energized by Kakashi's thoughtfulness and abundant love, she spirited herself into the bathroom, quickly showering and getting ready for dinner. She made her way back into her bedroom, which brought out another iridescent smile to her face, and picked out her favourite little black dress that she had saved for a special occasion. A pretty halter-top styled piece with a short flowy skirt.

It would require her to go braless, but she was okay with that, if it would give her an edge on Kakashi all throughout dinner. The idea of teasing him during a fancy dinner brought a mirthful laugh out of her.

She couldn't wait to see him. Sakura didn't think she'd be able to resist kissing him the moment she saw him. All the little things he did for her made her feel so special, and she couldn't wait to thank him for his sweet gestures.

They'd have days to spend together, to talk, to make love, to just grow closer and figure out their relationship together.

It was a dream come true.

_Dating_ Kakashi was a dream come true.

So with an extra sashay to her step she left her apartment and made her way to the restaurant, being only five minutes late. She was so eager to see him.

Eager for him to see her all dressed up for their date.

Entering the upscale restaurant, she spoke to the hostess who brought Sakura to a table in a quiet corner that was reserved for them. She smiled when she saw that there were thick blinds hanging from the ceiling, giving the booth a definite privacy to it. She figured Kakashi still had some pull as the Rokudaime, so he could ask for the special booth and receive it.

She saw that he hadn't arrived yet, which honestly didn't surprise her with his tendencies to be late. But she knew that he wouldn't make her wait too long. There was too much anticipation between them.

Sakura arranged herself so that when Kakashi arrived she looked alluring and sexy. She couldn't stop herself from smiling while she waited for him.

She was just so happy to be there.

A waiter arrived asking if she wanted anything to drink while she waited, and she ordered a glass of some of their best plum wine. It was sweet and smooth, and exactly what she needed to calm the thousands of butterflies fluttering in her stomach.

Soon after, the waiter came back with her glass, and so she lingered and sipped her drink.

It was twenty minutes past when she heard someone walk up to her table. A surge of excitement coursed through her as she waited for Kakashi to dip his head in.

But it was just her waiter asking if she wanted anything else while she waited. Smiling, she thanked him and sent him on his way, saying that she'd wait.

And she waited.

Her emotions turned from ecstatic, to let down, to angry, to frustrated and hurt and finally to worry.

Sakura knew that something wasn't right. Over an hour late was too much, even for Kakashi.

She didn't think he'd do something like this to her tonight of all nights.

Paying the restaurant for her two drinks, she left in a hurry, ignoring the pitying looks people gave her after they knew she sat there alone for the whole time.

She raced back to her home to see if he was there. But he wasn't. Mio's head popped up when she heard Sakura slam the door open. She jumped to her feet and rushed to Sakura.

"Mio, I need your help to find Kakashi. He hasn't been back here since I left, has he?"

"No," she replied, already moving to the door. She looked over her shoulder at Sakura, as if to say _what are you waiting for? Lets go!_

Sakura didn't hesitate and rushed to the door, opening it, letting Mio out and closing it behind her as she raced down the stairs. Mio immediately put her nose to the ground and started sniffing out Kakashi's scent, Sakura following closely behind her.

Obviously the first place they checked was Kakashi's home, but he wasn't there either.

Nose to the ground, Mio ran across the town in circles. Running past the market and the flower shop, but no sign of him.

The worry began to settle in her stomach like rocks weighing down a drowning victim. Something just didn't feel right about any of this.

She started asking everyone she recognized if they had seen him. None of them could give her the information she was desperate for. Some laughed her off thinking it was just Kakashi being Kakashi and others gave her more pitying looks.

None of that shit helped her right now.

She didn't need their pity, she needed to find Kakashi. None of that mattered until that feeling of dread was gone from her and Kakashi stood beside her once more.

The sun had already set and the street lights were flickering on, giving off an orange glow as she looked up and down the streets for Kakashi. Sakura was just about to head to Naruto's home to let him know, when a hand reached out and tapped her shoulder. She jumped since she was so caught up in her own thoughts.

"You're looking for Kakashi-sama?" a masked ANBU agent asked . All she could see was his shaggy brown hair sticking over his mask as he towered over her.

Sakura heard the agent mention Kakashi's name and she immediately answered. "Yes! Please tell me you know where he is?" she replied hastily. Waiting until he slid his mask to the side before she truly recognized him.

"Takeo? It's been a while since I've seen you." She smiled at him politely, while still eagerly waiting for him to show her where Kakashi was.

"Sakura, It's nice to see you again. He's at a bar around the corner. If you follow me, I'll show you which one," he said as he turned around and started walking.

Looking down, Sakura saw Mio tuck back into the shadows, thinking it was because Mio wasn't used to strangers. But Sakura didn't pay it any heed since she was so intent on finding Kakashi.

She looked at Takeo's back as he led her down the streets and alleys. He was a big man, strong and built for hand to hand combat, but he had the sweetest eyes, ones that he once said were similar to his elder sister's. They had dated briefly almost a year ago, but it never worked out. He was always very nice to her, but they just never clicked.

He was a quiet man, even when they dated, he wasn't much of a talker, so she wasn't surprised as he silently led her through the streets and alleys. And if she was being honest with herself, her mind was filled with her own thoughts to be worried about being chatty with Takeo.

Why was Kakashi at a bar? Why didn't he go to the restaurant? Was he having second thoughts about it all? Did something happen to change his mind?

Her mind was racing.

It was unsettling how fast her thoughts jumped from one to another and all of them were negative and troublesome. But she needed answers from Kakashi. Him ignoring their date hurt her in ways that she wasn't prepared for.

Abruptly, Takeo stopped walking. He had paused in a small path that crossed the quiet alleyway, and waited for her.

He pointed down a dimly lit corridor. "He's down there," he said quietly.

Sakura thought nothing of the location since back-alley bars were a commonplace thing in Konoha and many of the other nin-villages. And again, all she could think about was getting to Kakashi as soon as possible. She wanted answers.

Before running down the alley, Sakura wanted to thank Takeo for his help. She turned to express her gratefulness for his aid—

But it was too late.

The handle end of a kunai slammed into her temple before she could stop it and she crumpled to the ground at his feet.

He looked down at her, unhappy that he had to do this and that she'd searched so relentlessly for someone so unworthy, but he couldn't let her or anyone else interrupt his plans. He's waited too long for this opportunity.

He knew that Sakura wouldn't have given up until she found him, and if she saw what had truly become of her lover, then she'd get angry. And she's dangerous if she starts using her fists.

Bending down, he picked her up and held her in his arms. Less people would be worried if they caught him carrying her this way. He needed to bring her back and lock her up so that she wouldn't cause him any more trouble.

It wasn't perfect, but he'd manage.

And with her no longer causing problems he would have more than enough time to reap his revenge without any interruptions.

* * *

Dun dun dunnnnnn......

I hope you enjoyed the chapter! Please leave me a review telling me what you thought. Thank you!


	19. Something Savage

Thank you to my amazing betas: **Alien** and **Sarcastic-Mommy**. I'm so lucky to have you both in my life to help me out with this chapter and with the story! Lots of love to you two!

Thank you to all the amazing people who have been leaving me such amazing reviews! I read each one at least a dozen times and they are such an encouraging and wonderful thing to have! So **Thank You Reviewers**!

This was a hard chapter to write, and I think it's going to be hard for some of you to read.

**PLEASE READ THE WARNINGS CAREFULLY!**

_**Trigger Warnings: Blood, injuries, physical torture,** **psychological** **torture/mind fucking. Mention of: rape, prostitution, abandonment, child labour, and generally painful content.** _

**IF YOU ARE UNCOMFORTABLE WITH ANY OF THE ABOVE WARNINGS OR IF YOU ARE A MINOR, I SUGGEST YOU DON'T READ THIS CHAPTER!**

**I'm serious, please read the warnings and turn back if you're not comfortable. Sadly, not all stories are pure fluff and love, some have dark scenes. This is one of those times.**

**You've been warned...**

**The next chapter will be posted in exactly 2 weeks.**

* * *

The first thing she felt was the pounding in her head that matched the beat of her heart. The side of her head ached so much that she wasn't sure if she could hear anything over it's constant thumping. All the blood rushing through her ears drowned out everything else.

Pain radiated from the side of her head, forcing her to squeeze her eyes tightly shut. There was some sort of high pitch 'chink' and rattle that kept piercing through the thrum of blood pounding in her head. The sounds coming from around her were devastating her already overwrought senses.

Her whole body hurt, especially her head—it ached horribly. It didn't help that it felt hot and itchy on one side.

It was so painful and uncomfortable.

She tried to grab her head to hold as it throbbed in pain, but her hands wouldn't move. She was too tired to fight with her own body like this. She just wanted the pain to go away.

Trying to shift her body didn't work either. So she did the only thing she felt her body could handle: she released a quiet whimper and tried to fall back into oblivion.

But that high pitched 'chink chink chink' came louder and more frequently.

She just wanted that to go away, but it wasn't stopping.

Another quiet groan escaped her lips as she attempted to shift once more and was met with resistance from her tired body.

She thought something wasn't right, she could just feel it—but how could that be?

She had gone to the restaurant for her first official date with Kakashi, after coming back to a home filled with wonderful gifts.

It was a magical night, wasn't it?

The more she tried to remember the last few hours, the more her head hurt. The pounding in her temple only increased and it didn't seem like it was going to let up. But she tried to hold on to the happy memories of her and Kakashi sharing a special dinner together.

Except, something was missing.

Kakashi.

He never made it.

She went looking for him. They found him.

No, that wasn't right. She never found him, but someone knew where he was.

She almost found him, when—

Her eyes bolted open only to be pierced by blinding light. They immediately squeezed shut again as she winced in pain.

She groaned louder and the 'chinking' sound got closer. Or maybe it was louder.

The sounds weren't stopping, and they needed to. Everything needed to stop, especially the throbbing. She needed the quiet so desperately.

"Please... stop," she barely whispered.

And the 'chink' sounds halted immediately. But then a new sound started.

A low rumbled chant of the same word over and over again.

She still couldn't get her body to cooperate with her wishes to clutch at her head.

The low toned rumble became louder and much more persistent. Or maybe it was that the pounding and rushing blood was calming down as her ability to hear became more clear.

And then she heard it.

That voice she longed to hear every day for the rest of her life.

At first it was so mumbled. It didn't sound like his typical tone. But as one sound subsided, his voice became more clear.

"Sakura, please, answer me... Sakura, sweetie, I need you to open your eyes for me..." His loving voice paused for her as she moaned in response. "Sakura? Sakura! Wake up!... Sakura, I love you. Come back to me."

Before even opening her eyes, she had to get him to stop. It was all just too much to handle.

"Shhh, 'Kashi," she whispered again.

"Thank gods, Sakura."

She clearly heard the relief in his voice, but it didn't make sense to her yet.

Earlier, she hadn't been able to find him, so how was he here?

And why couldn't she still get her body to work the way she wanted it to?

She had been so worried and annoyed with him. Completely beside herself about him.

"Sakura, open your eyes for me," his voice demanded once more.

More memories started filtering in. Someone had helped her look for him and then her head hurt.

Everything went dark at that point. And that wasn't right.

Between the pain and the distorted emotions filtering through her head, she started putting things together.

Nothing was right.

"Sakura, please open your eyes," his voice came once more. He sounded worried. But far away.

Taking one last deep breath, it was time to try to open her eyes once more. But slowly this time—much much slower.

When she first opened her eyes, she saw the ground first. It was a dirt floor, and nothing special, but she was sure that she was inside instead of outside. Then she saw the wall that she was leaning up against. It seemed to be some sort of basement, but that's all she saw. At least until she turned her head and saw the reality of the situation she found herself in.

It wasn't good.

Reality was settling in fully now.

"Kakashi... what the fuck," she ground out slowly.

The rattling chink sound came back and immediately the sound grated against her sensitive hearing.

Turning her head slowly, she saw a sight that forced her stomach to drop.

She was in a small room. Dirt floors, three stone walls with bars on the far wall that reached from floor to ceiling. A cell.

Which would be enough to upset her, but it was worse.

On the far side of the room, Kakashi stood, shirtless. Bloodied. And chained.

He was watching her so intently.

His face was filled with so many emotions.

Anger.

Worry.

Fear.

It was the fear that finished pulling her into the present moment. It was the fear that compelled her to do something.

Finally willing her arms to move, she heard more rattling of chains. Slowly craning her neck back, she saw her wrists cuffed in manacles that were chained to the wall above her head.

Her leash wasn't long, but long enough to allow her to slump against the wall that she was chained to.

"Sakura?"

Sighing to herself, she ignored him for another moment. She wanted to get to her feet before anything else.

If she could stand up, she could take the next step of forming enough chakra to get out of this situation. It wouldn't take much to rip her restraints off and free herself and Kakashi.

She gripped the chains above her wrist and slowly pulled herself to her feet. Once there, she swayed briefly before firming her grip on the thick chains that bound her to the wall.

Taking a deep breath she concentrated on her chakra. She was still suffering from chakra depletion, but she always had her reserves and her seal to help her in times of need, and the predicament she found herself in certainly fell under that category.

Tightening her fists around the chains, she pulled.

Nothing.

"Sakura, stop. It won't work."

Ignoring him again, she pulled harder. Simple chains would not stop her.

She continued to pull until Kakashi had to yell to get her attention.

"Sakura! Enough! You'll only hurt yourself!"

She paused and glared at him.

"Look at your arms. You have seals on them. You cannot mold or control your chakra."

"Well at least I'm trying!" she shouted at him. Angry that he'd given up already.

"You think I didn't try to get out of here and get to you?" he bit back at her.

"Fuck! Just fuck this Kakashi," she screamed at him. Her shoulders dropped, almost feeling exhausted from the little bit of energy she expended. "What is this? Where are we?"

"I don't know," he said despondently, his voice hollow with exhaustion.

Hearing his tone only compelled her to try again. Another burst of energy ripped through her and she struggled wildly against her chains, never feeling so helpless.

"Stop it, Sakura! You'll just hurt yourself!" he said, his voice raising in concern.

"No!"

"Please! Please just stop, Sakura. Your head is already covered in blood. Please don't hurt yourself more," he pleaded with her.

Kakashi grappled in his own restraints forcing her eyes to shift to him. She finally stopped and looked at him closely. His wrists were bloody and raw, evidence from his own attempts to free himself. Drops of blood rolled down his arms as the new scabs were rubbed off with his fresh efforts.

It stopped her in her tracks the second she saw blood seeping from his wrists. They looked angry and red and so painful and it upset her so much to see how he wrestled with his bonds. All to get to her.

"Kakashi, your wrists are bleeding. And your arms are covered with blood. Lots of blood. Stop making your injuries worse."

"Fine, but you stop too," he demanded as he slowed his fight as she softened her own struggles.

When he finally stopped pulling on his chains, he let his chin fall to his bare chest with an exhale. With each quick breath he took in, his chest expanded and contracted. Sakura studied him carefully, finally accepting the horrible reality of their situation.

Her stomach dropped as her throat constricted. "Kakashi, what's going on? Why are we here?" She whispered, trying to keep the fear out of her voice.

Kakashi slowly lifted his head to stare at her. Studying her for a moment, he took a deep breath—she was unharmed except for the wound at her temple. At least for the moment.

"I don't know, Sakura. I saw who brought you in, but he didn't speak and I didn't recognize him. You already had the chakra seals on you when he dropped you to the ground and chained you up." Kakashi gave her a penetrating gaze. "What happened? Your head is covered in blood, so either you fell or you were injured."

"I'm not entirely sure. I went looking for you when you didn't show up at the restaurant. I think I remember someone helping me look for you and then I think I was hit. It's all so mixed up," she confirmed as she reached for her head and felt the sticky dried blood congealed in her hair.

"Do you remember who hit you?"

"No," she replied sullenly, but then looked up at him. "Kakashi, how were you caught?"

"He surprised me on my way home. He was wearing an ANBU mask. I'm not sure if that means he's ANBU or if he just stole one. He called my name with a friendly wave and when I waved back he threw some senbon coated in a fast acting sedative. I think I was out before I even dropped to the ground. I woke up like this about two hours ago, I believe."

"You have the same seals on your arms as I do."

"These seals are similar to those we put on criminals in our prisons. I've administered a few of these myself. They're impossible to break without help," he replied quietly.

"Have you come up with any escape plans yet?"

"Not exactly. I'm just a man without any chakra. I don't even know where we are. I think we're still in Konoha, but—"

Kakashi stopped talking when he heard a door creak as it opened and heavy footsteps coming down a set of stairs. He stood up to his full height, making himself seem as large and intimidating as he could. He saw Sakura attempt to do the same, but much slower and weaker than he expected. Their training had taught them to be ready for anything, but now, chained to opposing walls, Kakashi only felt the dread build up in his gut as he waited for nothing good to come.

* * *

Stalking into the small room where he had both of his captives sealed and chained to opposite walls, he smirked at the sight. Unlocking the cell door and entering, he briefly looked at both of them to make sure their seals were still intact. He had to remove the man's shirt for the process, but hadn't needed to do the same in the woman's case. He knew her strength and had to ensure that she couldn't use it here. It made him feel powerful when they were just as weak as civilians.

As he walked up to Kakashi, he thrust his hand out to his neck and grasped it tightly, dragging him upwards, looking him in the eyes. Bare feet kicked above the ground as he was held up midair.

Kakashi was tall and sinewy, whereas the other man had built himself to be robust and thick with muscles—built to give and take physical beatings. Built for this day.

The chains behind him rattled as Sakura struggled against her bonds.

Brown eyes stared into charcoal, but he could see that there was no recognition on Kakashi's part. It angered him so fiercely that he couldn't restrain himself as he punched him in his gut, knocking the wind out of him.

Kakashi doubled over, but didn't make a sound as he gasped for air. The man knew it would take much more than a simple gut punch to actually take down the famous Copy-nin.

"What the fuck do you want with us, bastard?" Sakura seethed behind him. She obviously hadn't seen who he was when he entered the little room. He wasn't even sure she would remember him from earlier seeing that he hit her hard enough to cause her a concussion that might result in memory loss.

But he would give her the chance.

He turned around and walked up to her. She was baring her teeth and he could tell she would attack him the first chance she got—but then she saw his face, and her struggling halted.

"You," she whispered in disbelief. "What is this? What do you want with us? Why did you abduct us?" she raised her voice at him.

"Not you. Just him. But you will be an unfortunate element of collateral damage."

"If you only want me, then let her go—" Kakashi started, but was abruptly cut off with a hard backhand across his face. His head snapped off to one side by the powerful hit. The precision of the blow was accurate enough not to snap his neck but the force of the blow strong enough to split his lip, causing his mouth to fill with blood.

"You don't get to speak," he fumed at Kakashi while grabbing the scruff of silver hair and ripped it back, baring his throat. He made it look like killing the Rokudaime would be easy. But first he wanted to drag this out. Kakashi needed to know why he was here, only then would his justice be served.

"What do you want with us Takeo?" Sakura asked of him.

He didn't turn around to address her specifically. "As I said, nothing with you. But he has to pay."

Taking a few more shots at Kakashi's body, he used it as his own personal punching bag. Takeo enjoyed the feeling of crunching bones under his knuckles, leaving instant red marks that would quickly develop into deep bruises. While using his fists to simultaneously feed and release his anger, Kakashi's lack of reaction made his irritation greatly increase, making him hit harder.

Kakashi didn't make a noise as his body was viciously beaten. With his arms splayed outward, he couldn't protect himself—he was open to whatever the bigger man wanted to do. His body already had begun to ache with each attack. There was no padding from his vest or other clothing to help soften the blows. Blood dripped down his chin and onto his chest, but the only thing he worried about was Sakura. He saw the look on her face as he took the assault.

"Stop and explain!" she screamed out at him. Growing worried at how much more Kakashi's body could take.

Takeo paused in his assault of Kakashi and righted himself, taking a step back to admire the results of the first of many rounds of torture he planned on bestowing upon the older man. He took a moment to catch his breath and figure out his next techniques to lavish upon his chained captive.

Kakashi spit the blood that had gathered in his mouth on the ground and spoke directly to Sakura.

"He probably has some perceived slight against me for some imaginary issue. You know you can't reason with belligerent fools." It was the first sound Kakashi made since their abductor had joined them. His voice rough and filled with unbridled fury.

"I said you don't get to speak," Takeo growled at him. Backhanding him across the face again, and before Kakashi could take a breath, he was immediately seized around his throat, limiting his ability to breathe.

It was obvious to Kakashi that their assailant was easy to provoke—which would make it easier for him to plot how to deal with the burly man. People always made mistakes when their temper was up. Kakashi grinned at Takeo, trying to provoke him further—and it worked. If he dropped his guard he could use his legs to push off the brunet, and take charge of the situation.

Takeo viciously squeezed at his throat tighter. His anger was getting the better of him. He lifted Kakashi completely off the floor, only holding him by his throat.

"Let him go!" Sakura screamed at him.

Growling in reply, Takeo spoke loudly and clearly to them both. "That's right, scream. Scream as loud as you can, no one is going to hear you. Don't you recognize it, Kakashi? Don't you recognize your own family home?" Takeo grinned as Kakashi's eyes widened and darted from left to right, looking for something recognizable. "That's right. You wouldn't. You abandoned it all those years ago. You don't deserve to have the prestige of a family home like this. You don't deserve much of anything, do you?," he said, giving Kakashi's throat a little squeeze to emphasize his point.

"At least I remember my family and I will do whatever it takes to make them proud. Who am I, Sakura? Why don't you tell him my name," Takeo demanded calmly but forcefully as his fingers tightened.

"Your name is Takeo. How does that matter? You're going to kill him," she cried at him. He heard the chains rattle behind him as she struggled fruitlessly.

"Tell him my full name," he bellowed at her savagely. He saw the charcoal eyes narrow, trying to understand the purpose behind this conversation.

"Nohara Takeo," she screamed, hoping it would make him cease the attack on the man she loved.

Kakashi's eyes widened in shock and recognition. He allowed his body to go slack as he began to understand the reasons behind this. "No, it can't be," he whispered using up the last of his breath.

"You finally get it now." Takeo grinned as the weight of the situation began to settle. "You murdered my sister, your teammate. She loved you and you tore through her chest with your bare fist, killing her in cold blood. It destroyed my family. _You_ shattered my family and you never paid for it!" Takeo roared at him. With his monstrous strength, he slammed Kakashi against the solid wall behind his body.

Sakura gasped as she heard a vicious snap from the brutal treatment of the man she loved.

"I want justice for her murder," Takeo pronounced venomously, keeping his eyes trained on the older man. He slammed Kakashi once more into the wall as hard as he could. Kakashi had been without oxygen for close to a minute, slumped against the wall as he began to lose consciousness. Takeo freed his throat and allowed the great Copy-nin to crumple to the ground in a heap of a beaten and bloody body.

"And I will get the justice my family deserves for the murder of my older sister," he said calmly as he walked out of the small cell.

Sakura looked on in horror as the man she loved succumbed to the beating. She knew Rin's story, and she knew that Kakashi had been there when she was killed on a mission. But she hadn't realized that her gentle lover had dealt the killing blow to his first female teammate.

This was going to destroy him.

She knew he wouldn't fight, since she imagined he felt responsible and blamed himself for her death.

It's likely he wouldn't leave this cell alive.

Sakura thought that maybe it was likely that neither of them would leave this cell alive.

* * *

She stared at Kakashi's unmoving figure. Takeo had left moments after Kakashi had stopped struggling. She knew he wasn't passed out—he just wasn't moving or looking at her.

"Kakashi?" she asked hesitantly. She wasn't sure what to say to him exactly. What does someone say in this situation?

They were chained to opposite walls, and there was no way out. No way to reach him to comfort him from his demons.

Demons of the past always came to haunt again. Alone, you can't escape them, but together, they could weather the storm until it passed.

"Kakashi, look at me," she tried again. Sakura wasn't sure how long they had until Takeo returned, to do who knows what to Kakashi and herself.

When she first met Takeo, she felt that he held anger deep down within him, but she never dreamed that it would have amounted to this. She recognized this type of savagery—it was rooted into his core and he didn't want to control it. It was clear that he wanted to release all of his rage on Kakashi.

It was obvious to Sakura that Takeo blamed Kakashi for some horrible things that happened to him and his family. She wished she knew the whole story, but she didn't expect to get answers from Kakashi at this point.

He was completely unresponsive. All she could see was the slight shifting of his chest each time he drew in a ragged breath. And at least there was that. Sakura could take solace that he was still breathing, but she knew she had to get him to respond to her.

"Kakashi, talk to me. Can you explain what Takeo meant? What happened to Rin-san?"

She had been watching him carefully and saw how his body shuddered when she voiced his former teammate's name. When he took a deep breath, she heard it catch and then finally expel in a rush. He raised his head slowly, but kept his eyes lowered.

"I killed her," he whispered. He couldn't look at her. He couldn't bear to catch her eyes with his own. She'd see just how horrible of a human being he truly was.

"It's as he said. I murdered her with my own hands." He knew that she was staring at him, waiting for him to continue, but what more was there to say? As fucked up as Takeo was, he was right.

"Come on Kakashi, tell her the whole story," Takeo said as he silently reentered the cell. He had moved so quietly into the tiny room that Sakura was surprised, but it seemed he hadn't caught Kakashi off guard. He was carrying a handful of kunai, senbon and other tools that would inflict all sorts of damage and pain.

Takeo placed the weapons on a little table he'd brought in, and then stood in front of Kakashi. He grabbed him by the hair and pulled his head back. "Come on, speak up so she can hear you. Tell her everything," he sneered as he gave his head a sharp jerk backwards. "Or would you rather I do it?"

Kakashi kept his eyes on the ground. He couldn't stand to look at Sakura and see the pitying glances she would be sending his way. And he couldn't face Takeo. There were so many piercing emotions surging through him.

Shame. Fear. Disgust. Rage. Grief.

Each of them held Kakashi in place. He couldn't get away from them. He deserved them, and this. He had carried this secret with him for so long, and pushed it down so deep, he had been sure it was gone. But it wasn't.

It was finally here to haunt him again and end him this time.

And he would let it. He would let Rin's little brother take his justified revenge and give up as a peace offering to Takeo's demons. It was the least he could do for his former teammate.

Keeping quiet for Takeo to exact his revenge was the only option he could think of.

So he didn't struggle when the fist in his hair violently pulled back again.

"I'll start right from the beginning, so that there's nothing left out." He turned to Sakura to make sure he had her attention as well. "And of course so you can learn the true nature of the scum that's been fucking you," he sneered at her.

"Takeo, you can explain everything without hurting him. You can't possibly think everything wrong in your life is his fault."

His eyes quickly flashed, filling with anger as he bared his teeth.

"Shut the fuck up. What do you know?!" he demanded as he released Kakashi from his tight grip and stalked towards Sakura. He moved until he stood directly in front of her, trying to intimidate her with his sheer bulk, but she didn't budge.

Inching her chin up, as if to entice him to hit her, she waited for his next move. But before he could do anything, she heard Kakashi's chains rattle behind Takeo.

"Don't touch her," he growled. "Do whatever you want to me, I don't care. But don't you fucking touch her."

Takeo smirked wickedly over his shoulder at Kakashi. "And just how do you plan to stop me if I wanted to? Neither of you have the strength or chakra to do anything."

Returning his eyes to Sakura, he reached out and with a single finger under her chin, raised her head so that he could stare into her eyes while craning her neck uncomfortably backwards.

"I'm sorry you're going to have to watch what I plan on doing to him. More than that, I'm sorry that his dead body will be the last thing you'll see," he whispered into her ear.

Again, the chain behind them rattle with Kakashi's struggles.

Sakura's heart dropped into her stomach. She had never felt so helpless before.

She was terrified for the man she loved.

Takeo laughed at the uselessness of Kakashi's actions.

"Shall we begin?" he asked them both as he stepped back from Sakura. "Keep your mouth shut or I'll make it significantly worse for him. And then for you," he said wickedly.

She wanted to be brave and sneer at him and talk back to him, but she didn't have her normal strength or power, so what could she do except keep her mouth shut as she was told, at least until she figured a way to get them both out of here.

"It all started with onee-san's love for you. She adored you. She had loved and idolized you for years. You were the best in your class and she knew that you were alone. My sister had the biggest of hearts and always wanted to help anyone in need."

Takeo walked over to the table where he had placed his weapons and studied them carefully, deciding which one to start with.

Sakura's eyes darted between Takeo, the weapons on the small table and Kakashi, who just stood with his arms spread out. Terror gripped her tightly and she was so scared of what she was about to see. She had no idea if she was going to be able to handle seeing Kakashi hurt in such a way.

He picked a standard kunai, twirling it around on his finger for a moment, completely comfortable with handling a familiar weapon.

Approaching Kakashi, he tightened his grip on the blade and slashed carefully across Kakashi's stomach. Deep enough to break the skin, but not enough to reach any vital organs.

Sakura heard Takeo sigh in relief with sick pleasure. Kakashi barely even flinched at the injury while Sakura sucked in a deep breath. It was just beginning and already at the first sight of his blood, her stomach turned.

For someone who was so used to the sight of blood, seeing Kakashi's was different than any others she'd seen before.

Maybe it was because she knew this was only the introduction to the event.

"When our father died in the Third Shinobi War, onee-san was 12 and I was 6. I barely remember what he even looked like, but I remember seeing how devastated my mother and sister were at the news of his death. They were heart broken by his loss."

Another slice into Kakashi's thigh, deeper this time, had him grimace in pain.

"You came to his funeral. The casket was empty, since they had no body to bury. You were cold—heartless and distant."

This time the kunai was unhurriedly pushed into his other thigh.

Kakashi hissed as he watched the blade sink deeper into his leg. He could feel his own flesh parting, being carved by the kunai. It began to slowly seep blood—drip by drip.

No vital organs were being hit. Just a slow, methodical butchery of his body as he watched.

"Onee-san needed you then, and you gave her and my mother the standard statement about the bravery of our father and left. But it didn't stop there."

Slice. Gasp. Ooze.

"My mother hadn't worked since onee-san was born. What our father made was enough to support our family. The money the village gave us for his death was a joke, but that's because all the money was going towards the war effort."

Takeo calmly placed the bloody kunai back onto the small table.

Tear streamed down her cheeks, Sakura saw how Takeo paused, debating how next to proceed with the slow and painful murder of Kakashi. She saw how a smile graced his features. And it tore her heart apart.

She choked back a sob as she watched Kakashi's pants darken with his own blood. His life was going to drain out of him before her eyes, and there was nothing that she could do to stop it.

"All responsibility fell to onee-san to make enough money to take care of us. She said that she was glad to do it. She was a brilliant medic, ahead of her years and her peers as well as an amazing sister on top of everything else."

Takeo laughed quietly as he remembered. But with one look at Kakashi, he balled his hands into fists and took several shots at the open cut on his stomach.

Instantly Kakashi started to cough up blood as his body was used as a punching bag. Without even trying, Takeo's fists and clothes were covered in splatters, while Kakashi hung limply from the chains around his wrists.

"We were lucky to have her. Lucky that we were a family."

Takeo paused and watched Kakashi for a moment. Then with a burst of speed and brutality, he punched Kakashi twice in the face.

Sakura heard the crunch of bones as his nose broke. The sounds of his torment and abuse were already haunting her and would be hard to ever forget. He stood still as Takeo took his anger out on him. He made no motions to make eye contact with her—which broke her heart with every sickening sound of his suffering.

She wasn't sure how much more of this she could take. Even with the story behind Takeo's hate coming out in bits and pieces, she would never believe that Kakashi deserved to be so ruthlessly treated. She wanted to fight, to try and stop this, but she worried about the repercussions if she did. The only thing she could do was keep her sobs silent and her fists balled.

However, she couldn't stop the tears flowing down her cheeks or her flinching at the vicious sound of each blow.

The sickening sounds briefly halted but were only replaced by the clang of the metal senbon clinking against each other as Takeo picked up a handful of them. He reached into his pocket, pulling out a little vial containing some sort of powdered concoction. He popped the lid open and dipped all of the senbon in.

"Onee-san was doing everything she could to take care of our family. So much responsibility for a child. Taking more and more dangerous missions to bring home more income for our mother and myself. Towards the end of the war, she was captured on a mission near the front lines, where most of the fighting was centered. When we heard the news, I remember seeing the dread on my mother's face."

Taking a few steps back, Takeo shot the first senbon into Kakashi's arm, and his reaction was immediate.

Kakashi gasped in air as the wound quickly registered throughout his body. He started sucking in breath as if he was drowning. Eyes widening in fright and pain as he pulled at his bound arm. It was as if he was trying to pull away from the injury. The small puncture shouldn't have brought out such a reaction. He doubled over in pain, grunting and breathing hard, trying to push past the agony. The minuscule wound caused more anguish than she's ever seen him in.

"Then we heard that you were being sent to rescue and bring her home to us. I looked up to you at that point, because onee-san did. She loved you and spoke so highly of you. You were everything to her. So we all knew you'd succeed and bring her home and reunite our family."

Takeo grinned as he took another senbon in his hand and shot it into Kakashi's bare foot. It caused a similar reaction as before, but now Kakashi groaned loudly in pain.

It was the first sound he had made throughout Takeo's torture, and it pleased the deranged man greatly. However for Sakura, it only made her suck in a deep breath in fear of what Kakashi was going through.

She could easily guess that the powder that was on the tip of those tools was a nerve agent that made everything more painful and excruciating. She had never seen it in action and now she never wanted to see it again. It was devastating to watch him suffer like this.

It tore at her heart to see him cringe in fear as he began to understand more pain was coming.

Unimaginable pain.

Unstoppable pain.

"And then I hear of you coming back to Konoha, alone and covered in blood," he said as he shot another two senbon into his shin and thigh. This time Kakashi howled as he writhed in pain. Takeo knew that it was a feeling unlike anything Kakashi would have ever experienced before.

Sakura had never heard such a visceral sound from him before and it sliced through her. Tears spilled over her cheeks as she watched him suffer.

"When the Yondaime-sama came to our door and told us that onee-san had been killed in the line of duty, I distinctly remember my mother crumpling to the ground in grief. How much more was okaa-san going to be forced to endure?" he asked neither of them. Taking a step up to Kakashi, he ripped the senbon from his body and dipped them back into the mixture before setting them aside.

"And then we heard the rumours. They were calling you teammate killer, friend killer. And since Obito-san was already dead and we all knew the story behind his death, they must have been speaking about onee-san. And then the story was confirmed. It was your hand that dealt the killing blow through onee-san's chest."

Sakura could see how the fury was taking over Takeo at this point, and instead of using blades on Kakashi, he returned to using his fists. Taking several jabs to Kakashi's sides and ribs, another to his jaw and then he kicked his side, knowing he would hit his kidney.

Kakshi's knees gave out as his breath was forced out of his body from the assault. Once more Takeo grabbed Kakashi by the throat and pulled him to his unsteady feet only to send his fist flying into Kakashi's face once more.

"My mother fell apart after that. She stayed in her room for days once she heard the news that you killed onee-san. She didn't eat for days, and she started to slowly waste away. I was still so young, I didn't know how to help her. How do you help someone who lost a husband and a child?"

He picked up five senbon and sent all of them flying into Kakashi.

This time he screamed in utter torment, wildly pulling at his restraints. His body had gone slack as he tried to curl inwards, to protect himself. But the chains kept him pulled apart in opposite directions, leaving him bare and open for more abuse.

Takeo started laughing to himself as he watched Kakashi squirm and try to hide his body from another round of senbon.

"We asked the few family members we had left if they could help us out. But no one could. My mother didn't know what else to do. There was a war going on, and no one had anything extra to share or help. It was a miserable time to be raised in."

Taking another step forward, he grabbed the senbon and ripped them out without ceremony. Thin lines of blood oozed from each of the small wounds. Even with the weapons pulled from his skin, the nerve agent still soaked into his bloodstream, making Kakashi continue to writhe in pain.

"So my mother had only one choice left. She sold herself to lonely shinobi, and anyone else who wanted a willing set of legs. I don't blame her. How could I? She was doing what she had to do in order to take care of me. But it was a horrible way to grow up seeing different men using my mother for their sick pleasures." He grabbed at Kakashi's hair once more and pulled back painfully hard again until he was forced to look into his eyes. "And you never bothered to show up and check in on the family of the teammate that you murdered."

Pure rage flowed through Takeo and Sakura could tell he was close to snapping. When he took a kunai out of his pouch and snapped it up to Kakashi's throat, Sakura thought that this was it. She saw how Kakashi closed his eyes and relaxed, allowing what was about to happen. She was sure she was about to watch the man she loved have his throat slit—but then Takeo started laughing.

"I'm not done with you yet," he said, shifting away. He took a step towards where a length of thick chain rested on the ground. Picking up one end he moved back towards Kakashi, shifting the chain in his hand, letting it rattle in the silence between them.

Kakashi stared on with a bleak anticipation. Despite feeling emotionally numb, his body was racked with a biting agony from the senbon and waves of pain from the other damage.

"My mother was forced to use her body as our source of income for over a year before the shame became too much for her." He drew back his arm and lashed out with the chain, striking Kakashi's ribs. The rattle of the chain obscured the crackle of the impact against Kakashi's body and the sound of him gasping for breath.

"After that time in which she was forced to let others use her for their perverted pleasures, she gave up. She broke down and poisoned herself. That was a month before my eighth birthday. In the span of a year and a half I lost all of my family. And it was decided that even though I was 8, and had already started at the Shinobi Academy, I was too young to take care of myself, so I was placed into the orphanage. I was in there until I was twelve. It's a horrible and rough place to grow up in, strict and even brutal at times. Nothing like the loving family I was born into. The one that you took away."

He lashed out with the chain twice more. Sakura was sure that his ribs were damaged beyond repair now and it was likely more than half were broken. It was even possible for them to be broken in more than one place. But Sakura watched carefully, looking for evidence of internal bleeding, but there seemed to be none. It was a methodical torture, doing the most to inflict pain but not drastic damage and kill. Which could only mean that he intended to drag this out as long as possible.

She could tell that Kakashi was having trouble breathing, and he was coughing up droplets of blood with every breath. Pink, red and crimson welts were quickly forming and covering all visible skin. And even though the blood flowed freely from his cuts, bruises lain hidden beneath the flowing rivers of red. Sakura still hadn't made eye contact with Kakashi since the beatings began, but she could see the look in his eyes.

There wasn't anger, or hatred, she didn't even think she saw shame—it looked blank. Unresponsive.

Dead.

Either he had already accepted the fact that he will be dead soon, or he had given up.

It was most likely both.

There was no fight in him, no will to survive. No fire left in him.

He had accepted Takeo's sick delusion as reality and gave up on them both.

It broke Sakura's heart and made her so furious with the situation, with Takeo and even with Kakashi. She resented how quickly he'd given up on her—on THEM. How quickly he forgot the past 24 hours and his proclamation of his love for her.

Takeo drew back his arm once more and slung the heavy chain at Kakashi's arm. With a sickening crunch, and a roll of Sakura's stomach, she saw his arm break and hang at an odd and uncomfortable angle. But with the force that Takeo had hit it with, she had to be thankful that it wasn't torn off. As a medic, she knew the limitations on healing a broken body, and Kakashi was quickly nearing the point of no return.

Kakashi groaned loudly, as he was wracked with another set of coughs. Large globs of bloody phlegm came out with each cough.

She had to do something. Anything that would at least give Kakashi some sort of short reprieve from the brutality. Sakura carefully pulled at her chains, testing her strength to see if any of it had come back. Even though it was unlikely, she had to try. Standing there and doing nothing was not the type of person she was.

However, in the short time she glanced away, Takeo had switched once more to kunai and approached Kakashi again.

"So now you know the whole story. Now you know that you're directly responsible for murdering my sister and the death of my mother. You don't deserve to live. You don't deserve to be seen as a hero. You only deserve to die in shame, alone while in pain and fear," he said quietly.

And with a slow and measured movement, he pushed the kunai he was holding into Kakashi's side, carefully and slowly between the ribs and deep into his lung, causing it to deflate permanently.

If Kakashi could lower his arm, the handle of the kunai would be in the way. However, with his bound arms, it was impossible for such a movement. Instead he gasped and struggled for air. Every breath in was an effort and Sakura had had enough.

"Please! Stop! He can't breathe!" she screamed at him and pulled against her restraints in a vain attempt to break free.

Takeo spun and stalked towards her and immediately lashed out and smacked her across the face.

"I told you to keep your mouth shut," he growled as he stood before her. "I told you that if you spoke up, it'd only be worse for him. I will take it out on him, and make sure you suffer as he suffers."

Without another word, he stalked out of the cell, and she quickly began to regret speaking out. She could hear him doing something just out of sight and with each sound he made, her fear spiked. She wasn't sure what he was doing, but she was terrified for both of them.

"It's okay, Sakura, don't provoke him. Let him do whatever he wants to me. I deserve it. It's all my fault," he shuddered as he sucked in another painful breath. The kunai still lodged deep in his side, bringing more pain with every movement or gasp.

It had gone eerily quiet in their cell, despite the echo of gasps of breath. She could tell by his posture that he'd given up. Everything Takeo had explained to them had scraped away at Kakashi's protective barrier that had always kept his ghosts at bay. Now he was completely exposed, his ghosts revived, haunting him and tearing at his sense of self. His eyes looked hollow, and shoulders weak from the resurfacing memories.

Sakura didn't know what to do or what could be done. It tore at her soul to see him so broken, an empty shell of who he was. The only thing she could think of doing was beg him to stay strong and believe that they will get out. And hopefully get out alive. She had to do whatever she could to reach him and convince him.

"No Kakashi! It's not okay! Don't give up. Please don't give up. We will get out of here, I know. Please don't die and leave me alone," she begged as tears spilled over her cheeks. But even now he refused to look at her.

"Just do what he says and hopefully he'll let you go. I'm sorry Sakura. I'm sorry you are caught up in this. So sorry," he muttered quietly.

His hair hung in front of his eyes, obscuring her view of his face, and what she could see of his face was literally a bloody mess. His nose continued to drip blood from when Takeo had punched him. It was unlikely that he could smell anything with how badly it was broken.

Sakura wasn't sure how much longer he could last, even with Takeo being as careful as he was to miss vital areas. The mind and body were only able to withstand so much. There was a possibility that his body could go on and handle more, but mentally he was already done, and nearing death.

Just as she thought she'd never look into his eyes again, his chains rattled as he attempted to stand up straight.

The look he gave her was enough to break her. Her tears began to stream down her face in earnest.

"God's I wish I could wrap you up in my arms, one last time," he sighed wistfully. "I should be more sorry that you're in this situation because of me, because I love you, but I guess I'm too selfish for that too."

"No, Kakashi—"

"You'll never hold her again. In fact, the last thing you'll hear is her screaming," Takeo said as he and a clone walked in.

One of them moved to stand beside Kakashi and drew a kunai and held it snuggly against his throat, while the other one approached Sakura. He grabbed at her chains and pulled at them sharply.

"Do anything stupid and you'll watch the other one die immediately," he stated clearly to both of them.

Filling with dread, Kakashi shifted carefully as he watched Takeo undo her chains and began to pull her away.

"Wait! What are you doing with her? Where are you taking her?" Panic rose in his voice and grabbed him by the throat when no answers came and Sakura thrashed in Takeo's grip.

"Let go of me asshole!" she screamed as she tried to pull away from him, but Takeo was so much stronger than her when she couldn't tap into her chakra and strength.

Tired of her struggles he grabbed her by the hair and dragged her out of the cell while she kicked and writhed in his brutal grip, trying to pry his hands off of her hair. She continued to scream at him to let her go, but he didn't, he held fast and didn't look back.

Sakura managed one last glance at Kakashi before she was dragged out of the cell. He looked more alive and terrified than she'd seen him since his torture began.

One last look before both of them were killed. It wasn't enough for her.

"Don't you dare give up Kakashi! I don't care what this fucker says, don't let him kill you! His need for revenge will never satisfy his blood lust. So fight! Fight for your life," she roared at him.

The short amount of time they had together would never be enough for her. She wanted years with him, not hours, not minutes, nor seconds. She wanted a life where she could wake up every morning in his arms and fall asleep in his warm embrace. She grew furious at Takeo for taking her away from him.

"Shut up, you stupid bitch," he growled as he slapped her across the face again. He wrenched at her hair painfully and whipped her against the wall, causing her to scream out in pain.

"Don't hurt her. She's done nothing to you. It's not her fault," Kakashi snarled, nearly frothing at the mouth.

His eyes darted back and forth between the Takeo clone beside him and the one dragging Sakura away. He clenched his jaw when the last of her he saw was her kicking feet. Terrified of what was going to happen to her, while uncaring of what was coming next for himself, he started to struggle against the chains, despite the pain it caused him.

Takeo shifted his face closer to Kakashi's and whispered into his ear. "I'm going to fuck her until she's raw. Do you want to hear us fuck? I know I can make her moan louder than you ever did," he taunted him as he pushed the kunai harder against his throat, allowing it to bite into his skin. "Do anything stupid and I'll only make it worse for her. And believe me, I can always make things worse."

When she screamed out once more, his head twisted in her direction, terrified for her. He couldn't stand to hear her in pain. She shrieked out once again causing his heart to plummet, his throat to close and his breath to catch.

In a blink of an eye, Takeo removed the kunai at his throat and grinned wickedly.

"Her screams will be the last thing you ever hear."

Kakashi snarled as Takeo raised his hands and waited barbarously.

Another piercing howl from Sakura and Takeo reached out and slapped Kakashi's ear hard enough to instantly rupture his ear drums.

Kakashi roared out in misery, and as the agony subsided and the ringing lessened, he heard nothing else. It was a perverse and cruel type of torture to hear the screams of the woman you love and adore.

All hope drained out of him, as he realized death was near since Sakura's cries had been the last thing he heard.

* * *

For those of you who made through the chapter, I hope you're okay. I hope you're a little surprised by somethings, and not too horrified by others.

If you can, I'd like to hear what you thought of the chapter, but please only positive and helpful feedback.

The next chapter will be posted in exactly 2 weeks, so hang in there. Thank you for reading and surviving this chapter! (I won't say enjoying, since I doubt you did enjoy it...)


	20. Something Fatal

A Big thank you goes out to **Alien** who constantly is helping with all of my chapters, all of my thoughts and basically for keeping me sane. It's been a lot of work for her ^_~ I highly recommend reading her stories!

Another BIG thank you goes out to **Sarcastic Mommy** , my amazing beta, who seems to never mind that the chapters are getting bigger and bigger. You've been so sweet and so helpful, I really appreciate it!

So you've survived the rough chapter! Good job! They're not totally out of the woods yet, so some of the same triggers apply:

**Trigger Warnings: Blood, injuries, physical torture,** **psychological** **torture/mind fucking.**

Don't worry, this chapter isn't nearly as rough as the last one.

* * *

Kakashi stared at Takeo in pure horror. He could see that the ruthless bastard was laughing, but he couldn't hear anything, nor could he smell anything with his broken nose. And now that Sakura was in another room where he couldn't see her, his blood ran cold with terror.

Despite being in tremendous amounts of pain, he couldn't help but struggle against his chains. He didn't want to think of what Takeo was doing to Sakura, but it was the only thing that was going through his mind. Replaying horror after horror that Sakura could be suffering through, all because of him.

He couldn't bear to think of her being forced to endure Takeo. It was a disgusting and sickening fixation of perverse individuals.

For her to be violated just feet away from him filled him with such fury. Kakashi once more began to pull against his bonds, ignoring the searing pain that shot across his body with each movement.

As helpless as he was, he increased his attempts to break free, because he couldn't stand to do nothing. He had to do anything and everything he could to try to save her from that fate. Yet, with every rattle of his chains, he brought more attention to his helplessness and more pain to his broken body.

He noticed that Takeo said something to him, but Kakashi couldn't make out whatever he was saying. Takeo's sadistic grin was enough to fill Kakashi with such loathing and hatred towards his captor while still making him feel nauseous about Sakura's fate.

Kakashi roared as loudly as he could at Takeo and at the event playing out before his eyes. He could feel his voice go hoarse with his effort, even though he could no longer hear himself. He wanted to fight for Sakura's sake, but he felt so broken and he knew that nothing he could do would help either of them at this point.

Kakashi noticed Takeo's face change from sadistic to tired as he grew bored of the game and the way Kakashi was acting. With two perfectly aimed punches at his solar plexus, Takeo immediately knocked the wind and the struggle out of him.

Coughing and choking out globs of bloody phlegm, Kakashi fell weakly into his restraints, and moaned in pain as his own body weight pulled at his broken arm. A final punch to his cheekbone had Kakashi seeing stars flash before his eyes.

Unable to catch a breath, his last thoughts before passing out were of Sakura, and of how he regretted being the reason why she was caught up in this horrible nightmare.

.

.

.

Flashes of light and low vibrations of heavy objects being thrown about was what brought him out of his stupor.

Kakashi couldn't see from one eye, and his sight in the other one was blurry.

Everything ached.

Especially his heart. He hadn't been able to save Sakura from being raped and probably murdered.

The only thing he wanted now, was for Takeo to claim his vengeance and end his life. He had nothing left to give. Nothing left to live for.

He still couldn't smell or hear, his sight was nearly nonexistent and he knew his body was close to giving up. The waves of pain were fading bit by bit, until they were slowly lapping at the edges of his consciousness. Numbness was settling in once more, and Kakashi welcomed it wholeheartedly.

Trying his best, he sought out Sakura's face in his memory, bringing it to the forefront of his mind. If nothing else, visions of her were the only thing he wanted before he faded away.

Remembering the way her hair smelled whenever she'd tuck her face into his neck.

Remembering how it felt to have her hot breath fan across his bare skin as his fingers skimmed across her soft contours.

Remembering her musical voice as she laughed at something he said or did.

It was these beautiful memories he held onto as he drew in his final rasping breaths.

He gave into the pain as his body went slack.

It was finally over.

Or was it?

The soft brush of fingers across his battered face, went carefully to his neck, checking for his pulse.

Kakashi was too weak to do anything other than to pray for the pain to end.

He had nothing left in him to give.

Multiple sets of hands held onto him as they reached for his wrists. With measured movements he was released from his bonds, but he did not fall. They supported his battered body as gently as a mother's embrace, while all he could do was remain in this hazy semi-conscious state.

He wanted to hold on to what remained of his strength for Sakura. Everything throbbed in time with his heart. The steady beat of pain was slowly wearing him down.

But he was desperate for Sakura.

He tried to use his voice, but he wasn't sure if anything came out at all. Trying again to form Sakura's name on his lips, he was sure that he croaked out some sort of sound. He could feel the vibrations of his own voice in his head, but he couldn't hear if anyone was responding to him.

One thing he did know was none of these hands were hers. Her touch always carried a special feeling with it. A kindness that he'd never felt in any other. That meant that none of these people were her.

With the last of his strength he whispered her name as often as he could before darkness took him once more.

It broke him that he'd never feel her touch again, never feel her loving presence again.

She was gone.

.

.

.

Abruptly, Kakashi was torn away from floating in numbness and shoved into a painful consciousness. He was so confused why he couldn't just be let go.

And in so much pain. Too much pain. Why wouldn't they just let him go?

He was so tired. Tired of fighting. He just wanted to drift away.

But they were working on him, trying to put him back together. Trying to save his body.

He tried to tell them not to bother, because it wasn't worth it if she wasn't around, but he didn't think they could hear or understand him.

So many people were surrounding him, working on him, ignoring his wishes to be left alone. He wasn't even sure of how long they had been at it for.

It seemed endless to him. Too many people working so hard to save one miserable life—didn't seem worth it to him.

However, he didn't have any fight left in him to make them stop. So he just laid there, waiting for them to fail and for death to claim him. Or worse, for them to succeed and put his body back together.

It was up to the fates and not him. Although death seemed more likely to him since it was so hard to breathe.

Perhaps they'd finally give up and let him rest in peace.

He drew in one last breath, slowly releasing it and then didn't draw another.

Finally… bliss and eternal slumber...

* * *

Sakura wandered between the many rows of headstones, looking for one in particular. It had been nine days since she had been rescued, and those nine days had been filled with the worst heartache that she had ever experienced.

Her heart was filled with fresh grief as she moved through the rows and recognized so many of the names written on the headstones. There were even a few fresh graves—which gripped at her heart all over again. Despite being a medic, she knew that death was a part of a Shinobi's life, but that didn't mean it hurt any less.

Feeling her heart clench, she stopped at a headstone with a newly engraved name. Looking at the flowers already placed there, her eyes began to well up. This had been her fault. Another one of her failures. She should have been able to save him, and the guilt tore at her heart.

She said a few quiet words to the stone, hoping that he had moved on in peace. The young boy's name carved into the stone, etched away at her calm facade. He died only a few months ago while he was in her care. After another moment of quiet reflection and composing herself, she left a few flowers for him on his stone, before standing up and resuming her walk through the massive graveyard.

Finally finding the grave that she had been searching for, she fell to her knees before it with a quiet sob. What could she possibly say to the grave before her? What could she say to ease the ghosts of the past?

Her heart tremoured in her chest as she looked at the name engraved on the stone.

Nohara Rin.

Placing the rest of the flowers she had carried with her on the stone and bowed her head in silence.

"Hi. I know we've never met, but I've recently met your brother, and I wanted to say how very sorry I am for everything you went through, and everything he went through too," she paused as she sat back on her heels. "I don't even know what else to say, besides that I'm sorry. I wish you and your brother didn't have to go through what you had endured. I wish that Kakashi didn't have to make the choices he had to make, to go through all that suffering. But it's too late for wishes that would change the past."

She took a moment, trying to calm herself down and allow the lump in her throat to drop back down to her stomach. It didn't help that her grief felt so fresh and unbearable.

"It's too late for Kakashi," she said as she tried to overcome the snag that caught her throat and gripped it tightly.

"I'm not sure if I can move on from this." She couldn't hold it back any longer. She brought her hands up to her face to hide the tears that were streaming down her face. "I don't know if my heart can take it."

Her shoulders shook as she quietly sobbed into her hands. The trauma of the past week finally catching up with her. She collapsed forward onto the ground before the gravestone, and sobbed until she was worried that she wouldn't be able to catch her breath. Her whole body racked with tremors as her emotions came flooding to the surface.

She heard the quiet footsteps of someone approaching her from behind, and she tried to compose herself before she had to face the person.

"Sakura?" Naruto quietly called out.

She couldn't bring herself to form actual words, so she hummed in response.

"Are you okay?" The grass rustled beside her as he sat down. "I mean, I know you're not, but are you?"

Sakura couldn't help the slight smile that graced her features for a moment. Naruto sometimes fumbled with his words, but his heart was always in the right place. In a platonic kind of way, she loved that about him.

She rested her head against his shoulder. Strong shoulders that supported the weight of their nation, of their past deeds both the good and bad.

"Thank you, Naruto." She didn't know if she could truthfully answer his question, because she wasn't sure if she was okay—or if she ever would be.

"You know that I'll always be there for you. I'll make sure that everything will be alright. I'm good at that," he said as he wrapped an arm around her, and allowed her to lean on him.

"I know, Naruto." She brought her hands up to her face to wipe away the rest of her tears.

"You know, it's okay to cry," he said quietly.

"I'm all cried out. I don't have it in me to continue to wallow like this. I need to move on."

She looked at the gravestone before her and the memories of the past nine days came flooding back without her permission.

* * *

Remembering it as if it only happened hours ago instead of days, she was sure it would haunt her for years to come. After Takeo had dragged her away from Kakashi, he had brought her to the small open room beside her and Kakashi's cell.

She had fought him tooth and nail, desperately trying to get away from him, but without any chakra, she was just too weak to win. However when she bit him as hard as she could, he grew angry with her and slammed her into the wall, making her dizzy for a moment while he locked her chains to another ring in the wall. When her vision cleared, she fought and squirmed away from him until he kicked her hard in the side, knocking the air from her lungs.

Before she could retaliate once more he slapped her hard in the face and pulled her head back by her hair, making her scream out in pain. Then with a painful roar from Kakashi, the Takeo clone disappeared in a poof of vapor, leaving her suddenly alone and trembling in fear.

Renewing her struggles, she knew she had to get out and help Kakashi. Now that she wasn't there with him, she felt that he was in even more danger from Takeo.

When she screamed out for Kakashi, but didn't hear a response, it terrified her.

Takeo's sadistic nature was so much more hidden than she had ever seen or suspected. But his sights were set purely on Kakashi. She was only caught up in this mess because she had been so adamant about finding her lover.

Remembering what Takeo had said that she would only be killed because she had caught on to his plan, wasn't as reassuring as you would think. Such needless and ruthless killing was the trademark of someone so fucked up that nothing would ever change his mind.

Being away from Kakashi, and still hearing the rattle of his chains, and his moans, grunts and groans of pain, gnawed at her. She had heard Takeo laughing a few times which only served to terrify her further.

When Sakura had been gearing up to pull at her restraints once more, there was a chaotic boom and then a surge of bodies coming into the basement. In a blink of an eye, the basement was filled with dozens of Narutos.

Knowing that she was safe with her childhood friend, she finally gave into her exhaustion and slumped against the wall. Naruto moved to her side in an instant, breaking her from the chains, picking her up and immediately bringing her out of the basement.

She had begun to push herself out of his arms, trying to get to Kakashi, but he had stopped her, telling her that she needed to get checked out at the hospital before she could see Kakashi.

Being as weak as a kitten, she had little choice but to do as she was told. She would worry incessantly until she saw Kakashi again, but she knew that Naruto would take care of him and allow her to see him once she was out of danger herself.

They didn't need her getting in the way as Naruto rescued him. She knew that as a medic, she was of no use to anyone right now—even though it hurt her to accept that fact. Relaxing against Naruto was the only thing she could do as he brought her to the hospital to be checked out and until they removed the seal on her chakra.

Sakura ended up spending two days in a hospital bed. She slept for large periods, but the remainder of the time she was restless for news about Kakashi. Tsunade, Shizune and Ino all took shifts watching over her, but each of them were quiet about Kakashi's health, being elusive about how he was doing each time she asked.

Finally she had enough of their stonewalling after two days—she was determined to get to Kakashi and see him. They had removed the chakra seals on her once she had been admitted to the hospital, so with a careful release of chakra, she healed the rest of her physical damage and crept through the hospital in search of his room, thankful for her familiarity with the hospital.

The darkness of the night engulfed her senses as she stepped in. She saw his sleeping body resting on the bed, but as she moved towards him, she took one look at him and it shook her to the core.

As she got closer, her eyes welled up with tears. Kakashi was covered in bandages and filled with multiple tubes and IV lines. He looked so weak and so helpless, and it shocked her to see him like this. Feeding tubes, three IV lines, a drain coming out of his ribs and bandages covering 90% of him. His right arm had metal braces encircling it with rods and pins securing the shattered bones. There was likely so much damage there, that it may not heal correctly, and he may have limitations in that arm for the rest of his life.

She moved to stand close to his head, half expecting him to open his eyes for her—but he didn't. His face was covered with an oxygen mask and bandages that covered most of his face including his right eye. Sakura noticed how messy his hair was, after days of being unkept. Unable to help herself, she reached over and pushed his bedraggled hair off to the side. What she wouldn't give to see his beautiful eyes flicker open and crease in pleasure at the sight of her, like she had so often seen before.

But he remained caught in a deep sleep, unaware of her presence. In the past he would have been jolted awake by anyone reaching out to him. But now he was silent as the dead.

Desperate for answers about his condition, Sakura moved to the foot of his bed and picked up his chart. She was sure she was crossing some sort of line by reading it, but she couldn't be bothered by such things now. She needed to know.

Taking a heavy seat in the chair beside his bed she glimpsed over the papers and felt her heart constrict at what she read. Tears came flooding out of her eyes as reality struck her.

He was medically sedated since the pain was too much for him to handle while awake. The number of broken bones exceeded what she even thought was possible to survive. Even though tears continued to roll down her cheek, she smiled a rueful smile, thankful that Kakashi was known for beating the odds.

As she continued to read through his chart, she came across something that just made her heart stop and clench painfully in her own chest.

Kakashi had technically died twice on the table.

His heart had stopped. Two times.

He gave up and gave in.

Letting the chart fall to her lap, she fell forward and buried her face into her hands as she quietly sobbed in the dark. Her own heart felt as if it was twisting at the thought of Kakashi not being a part of her world.

She grew angry, so angry and furious at Takeo for doing this to Kakashi—at the world for doing this to him. He didn't deserve this. He's already given so much to the village, he—

"Sakura?" a voice whispered to her.

Jerking her head up to see who it was, she was surprised to see her mentor approaching her quietly.

Furiously wiping at the tears on her face, she looked up as the Godaime came to stand before her.

"You shouldn't be out of bed," she stated as she placed a hand under Sakura's chin and raised it to meet her eyes.

"I... I had to see him," she said as she lowered her eyes back down to his sleeping form.

"Yes, I thought you might try something like this. Naruto filled me in about what's going on between you two. Really, Sakura, couldn't you find someone your own age?" she teased as she pet her hair, trying to comfort her.

Sakura kept her eyes focused on Kakashi as she spoke to Tsunade. "I love him. And he said he loves me. It may not make sense to anyone else, but it's what makes sense to us. Or at least it did."

"Why do you say that? What changed?"

"He gave up. He let Takeo torture him."

"Sakura, I understand why you feel like that, and you're right, it probably did seem like he gave up. But people don't think clearly when the fear of death hovers over them. I know that the few times he was conscious he was calling out for you. He was terrified for you and he never stopped struggling to get to you."

The mothering side of Tsunade rarely came out, but when it did, it was always exactly what Sakura needed. She gently brushed the rosy locks out of Sakura's eyes.

"Don't let the trauma of this pull you away from him Sakura. He loves you, let him heal and prove it to you," she said, resting a hand on Sakura's shoulder.

"He was tortured so violently both physically and mentally—"

"I know, Sakura. I put a lot of time into saving his ass. Even Naruto donated some of his chakra to help. He'll pull through, because he has you now. Just give him the chance. Give him time."

"Yes, Tsunade-sama," she answered, even though her heart was heavy with thoughts.

The days passed slowly for Sakura. She was released from the hospital on her third day, with the understanding that she'd be off of work for the following three weeks.

It was standard procedure to be off work after something as traumatic as abduction and torture. It was also part of rehabilitation to go to counseling daily for the first few weeks and then weekly for a few months depending on the outcome. Many shinobi ignored and got out of going to therapy, but she wouldn't. Sakura knew it was essential for mentally healing from something like what they went through.

Before going home, she had asked Ino to go in and remove the remnants of the failed date night from her home. The flowers, the champagne, the candles, all of it. She couldn't bear to see what she missed out on. It would be too much for her.

Arriving at her apartment she noticed nothing out of place. Sadly that made her heart ache all over. She was bitter about the wonderful night that was taken away from her and Kakashi. Looking around her home, she grieved for what could have been.

Not being able to face crawling into her bed, she curled up on the couch, pulled the blanket over her and sat there numbly for hours. Eventually she noticed tears were dripping down her face, but she didn't bother to wipe them away. It must have been nearing the middle of the night when her exhaustion won and sleep finally claimed her.

Over the few days, she spent much of her time alone, stuck in this routine. Wallowing in the dark, sleeping on the couch and only leaving her home when she had to. Coming to terms with what happened to herself and Kakashi wasn't easy. It made her slightly weary of everyone she came across, except a few close friends. Ino and Shizune had visited her frequently whenever she was home, keeping her company, helping her distract herself when the anxiety came back to haunt her.

By the third night of being in her own home, she couldn't stand it anymore. As torn as her heart was, she missed Kakashi and it pained her to think that he was all alone in the hospital. The red numbers of the clock glared at her as she walked by. It was almost six in the morning, but no one was going to stop her and ask questions why she was heading into someplace where she spent more time than almost anyone else in the whole village.

Sakura felt weirdly at ease as she quickly walked down the empty streets. A late summer's morning was peaceful with the cool overnight temperatures and overcast skies. Looking up, she thought it might rain before noon with the way that the clouds looked heavy and dark.

Once she made it into the hospital, she noticed a few of the night staff sending brief curious looks her way, but she ignored them as she moved to the ICU wing. Feeling nervous about what she would find, she took a deep breath and entered his room.

He still laid prone on the bed in the dark. There were less machines humming at her now, which lessened her fears a little. Only the constant beep of his heart rate monitor kept her company—which she was thankful for since it reminded her of his steady pulse.

Seeing the way he looked, still so helpless and weak, shattered her heart all over. There were not as many tubes in him compared to when she last saw him, but he didn't look like he was doing much better overall, which worried her.

It didn't take long for her to decide that she was taking over as his main medic. She had the skills and abilities to make an impact on his health, and no matter how mad she was at him, he still had her love and he still deserved to live a long, healthy and pain-free life. She knew that she could at least do that for him.

Grabbing his chart from the foot of his bed, she read through the new notes that have been added since she last read it. There's been good progress, but not enough to completely bring him out of danger.

Going to the far side of the room, she dragged the visitor's chair beside his prone body. Falling into the uncomfortable chair, she took his hand into hers and stared at it's familiar shape and scars, noting how it lacked his typical warmth. For a brief moment her heart dropped into her stomach at the lifelessness of his hand. Criss-crossed with faded lines from all his years of combat and so much bigger than hers: she loved his hands. She took a moment and cupped his hand between hers, willing her own warmth to penetrate his frail skin and bring him back to life. It didn't work as she knew it was a long shot, but they warmed a little, giving her hope that he would be okay again one day soon.

Pushing her feelings aside, she turned on her medic mode to deal with the task at hand. She knew it would be easier to separate her emotions concerning him from the patient's body on her gurney when she focused wholly on what needed to be done.

Kakashi was still wearing an oxygen mask, which didn't cover as much as his own mask usually did. She was sure that a few more people had seen his face now, but such was life. And that was the point—he would live, and she would continue to make sure of it.

Carefully, she pulled down the sheets that covered his upper body, inspecting as she went. His torso was still covered with so many ugly bruises that upset her no matter how hard she tried to keep her emotions in check. Placing a hand gently on his sternum, she pulsed her chakra into him, checking him over. She could tell that Tsunade and the other medics who had worked on him had done a good job—not that she had expected anything less. His ribs were all healed and his lungs were nearly perfect as well.

Sakura sighed with a deep relief that his major injuries had been so well taken care of. It gave her hope that he'd pull through just fine—except that he still wasn't awake. She shifted her chakra over to his arm, taking a deeper look into it, and she saw what was certainly causing one set of issues.

His arm was still being held together by exterior metal bracing that sent rods through his flesh and into bone. From wrist to shoulder, his skin was an assortment of more ugly bruises. She knew that the medics had left them to heal naturally since they're just superficial marks that almost never had lasting damage.

Getting comfortable in the chair, she placed both hands on his injured arm, and allowed her chakra to seep into him. She could tell that the breaks had barely been touched. They weren't life threatening, only debilitating, and there was always an order to what needed to be taken care of first.

It took some time, but she worked hard weaving together tissue and sinew, bones and ligaments, veins and arteries, until it was better than where it was. She would be able to advise the surgeons that they could remove the pins later that day.

Sakura could only hope that with less pain he would wake up soon. It worried her that he was still unresponsive.

The only thing that could be holding him back was himself. Sometimes a patient would give up and stop fighting to live, and that was something that petrified her. Sakura knew that if she stayed by his side and kept him company, he'd eventually realize that she's still here and he needed to wake up.

It might only be a distant hope, but what else could she do?

She sat back in her chair and brought her knees to tuck under herself to get comfortable. Taking his hand into hers once more, she leaned down and kissed the back of it.

"They say a patient can hear everything that goes on around them when they're asleep. Can you hear me?" she whispered into his skin.

Sadly the only response she got was the steady beep of the machine. Would she ever hear his voice again? Would he ever smile at her? Did he want to be a part of her life? It was heartbreaking to think that the answer to her questions might be a 'no'.

Brushing her fingertips across his knuckles over and over, she willed him to turn his hand over and take hers. But he never reacted, not even a twitch.

"We're not being held anymore. We're free. I'm okay, and you'll be okay once you wake up, Kakashi." she murmured as her voice began to catch in her throat. "Wake up and come back to me."

Lying with her head on his bed, she watched his hand, waiting for a sign that he was waking up. She had hers entwined with his—large covering small. Unsure of how long she spent like that, she started feeling her eyes grow heavy with sleep.

She thought that if she could just rest her eyes for a few hours, then she could take another look at his system and do everything in her power to bring him back to her. Heaving one last deep sigh, she let sleep overcome her and hoped for happy dreams of better times.

* * *

Sakura worked on him on and off for two more days, barely leaving his side for more than a few hours to get food or run home to shower and change. She was trying to be patient while waiting for him to wake up and be okay, but he wasn't being cooperative.

By the eighth day of treatment Sakura began to see some signs of improvement. He had even had two moments where he moaned and struggled against Sakura's hold and the restraints, but remained unconscious. It upset her to have to see him tied down once more, but they couldn't risk him hurting himself and even pulling out vital tubes or IVs. Despite those moments, he still didn't respond to her voice or touch.

Tsunade came in to relieve her and push her out of the room for a much needed break.

"If you don't eat a proper meal and take a nap in a real bed, you're going to end up looking older than me," said the Godaime.

Sakura felt both thankful and slightly irritated that she was pushed out of his room. Her mind couldn't help but contemplate Kakashi and his condition.

Once again he had survived another round of torture—except this time, she was there to watch it all play out. In all of her time as a ninja, she had never been captured and tortured like that. Her name had yet to grace the pages of the bingo books, unlike his. She just hadn't had as many years to make as many dangerous enemies as he had.

It devastated and haunted her to see him like that. Admitting it to herself, she was hurt by the way he had reacted to their captor. Once he found out Takeo was Rin's younger brother, he stopped fighting, essentially giving up. And that nagged her. She couldn't let go that he would give in so quickly to the demands of a villain like Takeo.

It disturbed her how quickly he gave up. How quickly he had forgotten about her and the life they had just begun to live together. How easily he was willing to die for a ghost.

She was lucky that Naruto had rescued them before it was too late—too late for Kakashi.

Pushing those ugly and negative thoughts out of her mind, she headed home, had a quick shower, and set her alarm to wake her up in four hours. She figured she could pick up food on the way back to his room and eat it in his company.

Feeling more refreshed after a shower and nap, she stopped and picked up a hearty meal in a to-go bag and made her way back to the hospital. She knew that she had only seen him a few hours ago, but Sakura wanted to be there in case he woke up.

She needed to be there when he woke up. Needed to see him awake with her own eyes.

When she made it back to the room, instead of Tsunade-sama there, she was surprised to see Genma and Shizune visiting with an unconscious Kakashi.

"Sakura, you're looking better. Tsunade said she sent you home a few hours ago," Shizune commented.

Genma smirked and walked up to her. "Don't worry about the old man, he'll pull through. Even the Godaime says that he'll likely wake up anytime now. So just take care of yourself, 'kay?" He placed a hand on her shoulder and gave it a slight squeeze.

Sakura had never considered Genma a particularly close friend, but she appreciated his brotherly charm. She smiled up at him and nodded her head slightly.

When Kakashi's heart monitor flatlined, Sakura's own heart dropped with it. Shoving her meal into Genma's surprised hands, she dashed over to Kakashi to check on him. Shizune was already on the other side of him ready to take action as well.

Staring down at him, she couldn't see any signs of something wrong, but she immediately placed a hand to his neck to check his pulse.

It was beating strong and steady.

"His pulse oximeter slipped off his finger," Shizune explained.

With her hand still resting gently on his throat, she startled as she felt the vibrations as he quietly groaned.

"I think he's waking up," Sakura said with measured excitement. She bent down over him and looked at his face for any signs of consciousness.

Watching as his closed eyes squinted in a wince and his mouth parted, brought a slight smile to her face. She couldn't help it when she reached over and cupped his face, and allowed her thumb to gently stroke his cheek.

"Kakashi?" She paused to calm her own heart. "Can you hear me?"

Sakura watched him carefully as he ever-so-slightly pushed his face into her hand and sighed quietly. Tuning out everything else, her focus was completely on him.

"Kakashi, you're in the hospital and you're okay. Just rest," she whispered to him.

Sakura watched as he shifted on the bed trying to get comfortable. When he pulled at the restraints on his arms and got nowhere, she saw how his eyebrows furrowed and the muscles in his jaw clenched. He began to pull more forcefully, trying to break free.

"Shhh, Kakashi, calm down. You're safe, but you've got to stop struggling," she said, trying to console him. But it was as if he wasn't hearing her.

The only thing that Sakura could think of doing was letting some of her chakra soak into him. She could only hope that it'd be enough to calm him and see what the issue was.

Carefully she allowed her chakra to flow through the hand that still cupped his cheek and it immediately settled him. It worried her when she saw his whole body go slack and sink into the bed. She knew he was sensitive to her particular chakra signature, so she could only hope that was what calmed him.

It broke her heart when she saw tears slip out from the corners of his closed eyes. With her other hand, she brushed them aside and held his face in her hands. Once she had completed her assessment, she could tell that he was still having issues with his hearing.

As carefully as she could she guided some of her chakra to his ruptured eardrum and circled it gently, healing the remaining issues.

Being so focused on Kakashi, Sakura forgot that Shizune and Genma were still in the room until Shizune reached out and placed a hand on Sakura's shoulder.

"We'll be on our way, but we'll check back in tomorrow. Call if you need anything at all," she said as she pulled Genma out of the room.

Sakura smiled to herself as she heard Genma grumble that he wanted to stay and then Shizune shushed him as she continued to push him out.

"Kakashi? If you can hear me, nod your head. You had injuries to your ears that impaired your hearing. You might not have full hearing back for another day or so," she told him quietly. She hadn't needed to raise her voice because her face was so close to his.

She felt him struggle once more as he tried to move his arm.

"Kakashi, I'm going to remove your restraints, please don't pull any tubes out. You're safe and okay."

Reaching down to his side, she removed the tie that held him down, healed the new red mark around his wrist and then moved on to his other hand. She was about to get up and remove his restraints on his ankles, but a tug at her shirt stopped her in her tracks.

Looking down, she saw his fingers weakly hanging onto her shirt. Sitting back down on his bed, she took his bigger hand between hers.

"I'm still here Kakashi. I'm not going anywhere."

But his fingers didn't let go, if anything, it seemed that he was trying even harder to hang on tighter. This small action of his brought such a bittersweet smile to her face.

She didn't think he'd be awake for much longer, since he was probably exhausted, but his wishes were clear enough. Sakura didn't want to let go either, so she did something she'd been resisting the whole time he's been in the hospital.

The beds were obviously only meant for one person, but she was small enough that she could fit alongside him. So being as careful as she could, she laid down beside him, resting her head near his on his pillow. She threaded her fingers with his and rested her other hand lightly across his torso. She felt every rise and fall of his chest while she laid beside him.

"Everything is okay, Kakashi. Just rest. I'll be here when you wake up."

Sakura felt him deeply inhale and then settle back, falling asleep in just a few breaths. She rested with him for another few moments before she slowly extracted herself from his grasp, thankfully, without waking him. She didn't want to be caught in bed with her patient, even if the staff already suspected something between them. She didn't need to confirm the gossip just yet.

She removed the restraints from his ankles, checking and healing any bruising she found there caused by his struggles. Once he was comfortable, she moved to the chair beside his bed and pulled out her now cold take out meal and dug in.

The relief she felt from knowing that he was conscious and lucid, helped diminish so many fears about his health. The thought of him _not wanting to wake up_ constantly present in the back of her mind plagued her for the past several days.

But now, with this development, his need to reach out for her, gave her a spark of hope for her to hold on to, something to comfort her until he woke up again.

And she didn't have long to wait.

Almost three hours later he woke up again, groggy and reaching out for her once more. Sakura immediately took his hand and told him that she's right beside him and not going anywhere. He attempted to talk but his throat was raw and still hurt from the breathing tube and lack of use.

She comforted him, carefully running her fingers through his hair and helped him with a small sip of water. She noticed that a short beard had started to grow on him—she didn't think she'd ever seen him with a beard before.

Without thinking, she ran a finger down the thick stubble smiling at the prickly texture. Sakura saw Kakashi's chest expand as he took a deep breath.

"Sakura," he whispered so faintly that she wasn't sure what she had heard at first.

"I'm right here Kakashi."

He groaned as he slowly turned his head into her hand and nuzzled it, sighing her name once more. It grabbed at her heart seeing him like this. Hard to believe such a strong virile man was reduced to a helpless and vulnerable being.

Tears gathered in her eyes as she did what she could to reassure him. "I'm not going anywhere, Kakashi. You need to get better and come back to me." She leaned down and kissed his sweaty brow.

After making a small sound of acceptance, he fell back asleep. Once more Sakura carefully crawled into his bed and rested beside him. Lying on her side, she must have spent hours just watching him breathe, and it was well past midnight when sleep finally claimed her.

When next Sakura woke, the room was still coated in darkness, but as she opened her eyes, she immediately saw a pair of charcoal ones staring back at her. He was barely moving, just blinking and watching her.

It was so quiet between them. There was so much to say, so many things to talk about, but it could all wait.

"Hi," she whispered.

"Hi," he mimicked barely above a whisper.

Reaching up, she brushed his hair off of his face. "Do you need anything?"

"No."

"Are you in any pain?" she asked as her medic mode kicked in.

"No," he repeated. It unnerved her how intense his gaze was.

"Okay," she said, suddenly feeling a little shy. Unsure of what to say or do, she let her hand slowly shift over his chest in a subtle pattern. It was relieving how warm he felt—not feverish, just alive.

"Kakashi, I've been worried about you." She could feel the tightness constrict around her throat, making it difficult for her to take in a calm breath. All of the emotions from the past two weeks welled up in her. Even she found it difficult to believe and process everything that happened to them in the past two weeks.

His eyes changed from a profound look to one filled with sorrow and regret. He struggled to move his hand towards her face, and after a moment, he lightly cupped her cheek, and brushed her hair behind her ear.

"I'm sorry… so sorry, Sakura," he whispered gravely.

"Shhh, Kakashi, don't worry. Just go to sleep. We can talk about it later. Just sleep," she reassured him. She moved her hand from his chest to cover the one on her face. "Sleep Kakashi, I'm staying right here."

She watched as his eyes filled with guilt and worry. It was hard for her to see such emotions in his eyes. So before her own eyes filled with tears, she shifted herself to kiss his brow, and then moved back to rest her head gently on his shoulder. He wouldn't be able to see the few tears that spilled out of her eyes and onto the sheet that covered his chest.

It wasn't long before Sakura felt Kakashi relax beside her as he fell back asleep, and shortly after that she felt the tugs of sleep pulling at her as well. It was a restless night for her. Every time she moved she worried about waking Kakashi, or hurting him more, or worse: him figuring out that she was upset and had been crying.

Sakura was feeling pulled in two very separate directions. One side of her felt such turmoil about the unresolved issues between them, but then such fear and worry about him took precedence in her mind and heart—at least for now. The war inside her dredged up horrible thoughts while she hung on to him as if he was her lifeline, and she his.

Only time would tell if they could heal the void between them.

* * *

As the first rays of light filtered through the window, Sakura woke slowly from sleep with a big yawn. Making sure not to disturb Kakashi, she removed herself from his side and visited the private washroom in his room.

She had brought a few essentials here on her many trips back and forth when she had decided to take over his care. Quickly splashing some water on her face, brushing her hair and teeth, she felt more presentable and ready to face the world. Ready to face Kakashi.

Just as she was leaving the small washroom, she heard quiet voices talking. Coming into the room, she saw Genma and Shizune standing close to Kakashi. Plastering a smile on her face, she looked into his dark eyes and his reaction when he saw her again.

There were so many unspoken words left hovering between them. And if they were handled incorrectly, they would only damage the tenuous ties between them more than they already had. They needed time to talk and sort things out, but Sakura already knew that it wasn't going to be easy for her to be that vulnerable with him.

When was the best time to have a heart-to-heart with a man who was still recovering from several hours of intense and horrific mental and physical torture?

There was no easy answer Sakura could think of, so she waited until the time felt right—whenever that was.

When Sakura stared at Kakashi for a moment, she could see his eyes fill with such strong emotions that she wasn't used to seeing there: guilt, shame and fear.

"Good morning you two. What brings you here so early?" Sakura asked pleasantly.

"We wanted to check in on both of you, and see if there's anything either of you need?" Shizune asked as she came to stand beside Sakura.

Even just seeing her senpai helped to calm her frazzled nerves. There was something so relieving about having Shizune in her corner, checking on her. It was so easy for Sakura to forget to take care of herself as she took care of Kakashi. It meant a lot to her to have her friend so close.

Sakura concentrated on Shizune while out of the corner of her eye, she saw Genma move to stand closer to Kakashi's bed.

"Thank you senpai, I think I'm okay for now, but I appreciate you asking." Even though she was smiling, she was also eavesdropping carefully on Genma's and Kakashi's conversation.

"You doing okay there Buddy?" Genma asked as he looked down at his long-time friend.

"Nothing worse for wear," Kakashi said with a croak. His voice wasn't back to normal just yet.

"Good to hear! Once you're out of this joint, drinks are on me! So, was it the same guy who has been after you all this time?" Genma asked nonchalantly.

Sakura's head darted to the left as she stared at the men. Not believing what she heard, she waited until they spoke again. But Kakashi had already noticed Sakura's intense scrutiny.

"Genma..." Kakashi sighed.

"What? It would be nice to know if Tenzo and I should resume our watch or not... wait. What's with the look?"

Kakashi ignored Genma's question and held Sakura's gaze. He could see her eyes change from worry to anger and hurt. He had kept this from her to protect her, which was the right move, he was still sure of that.

The shock she felt was riveting and was the most prevalent feeling coursing through Sakura. Shock and then denial. _It couldn't be_. _Again? But would he really do this again?_

Sakura didn't think that Kakashi would blatantly lie about something so important. Something so detrimental. But when he suddenly shifted his eyes and refused to make eye contact with her she knew that it was true. Her fears about him were coming true.

The impact of it all had made her throat tighten, making it hard to speak loudly. "Did you know? Have you known all along about Takeo?"

Genma's head swiveled around to stare at her, realizing his error.

"I, uh…" Genma stuttered out. Shizune walked over to him, grabbing his arm and roughly dragging him out.

"We'll just leave you two alone." Turning to Genma, she harshly whispered under her breath. "You dolt. You've got to learn to keep your mouth shut and your nose out of other people's business."

"But, it was just a question—" Genma fussed as he was pulled out of the hospital room.

Which left Sakura staring at Kakashi, and him not making eye contact with her. The room felt so big and cold, now that there was that space between them. She nearly fell into the chair beside her when the strength that was holding her upright left her body. With a white knuckled grip, she grabbed the back of the chair and stood her grounds.

She felt as if she was being ripped in two, each of her halves pulled in opposite directions. It was still so obvious how weak he was feeling, but at the same time, she felt such anger towards him. It felt like her whole being filled with anger.

Maybe this was all a game for him. Maybe he didn't really love her, and his confession and the date night were all just a game to him. Love means trust, and if he didn't trust her, then how could he possibly love her?

She took a step back from him unsure of what else to do.

"Sakura, wait. Please. Let me explain," Kakashi begged as he stretched out an arm towards her.

"Is it true? Did you know?" she questioned anxiously. Her mind was struggling to process this news. How could he keep such important information from her? Why would he?

_Because he didn't love or trust you, obviously_ , a small voice inside her said.

Dropping his outstretched arm back onto the bed, he sighed while striving to find the right words.

"Yes, I knew that someone was likely after me. But we didn't know who it was. I was being guarded by both Tenzo and Genma. And I had a set of guards on you as well."

Sakura's eyes tightened with anger. "You had people following me without my permission?" she demanded in a heated whisper.

"I, uh, guess. Yes." Kakashi didn't like the sound of her voice. It was obvious that she was angry at him, and he couldn't really blame her. He knew that he had handled the whole situation poorly, and if he could go back in time, then he'd change that.

But he couldn't. His mistakes were made. Hopefully she would see the good intentions that he had and that he was just trying to protect her. More than anything, he just wanted to move past this whole event.

However her features shifted from mad to angry to furious and all he could do was watch.

"And what about when you went docile down in that basement? Hmm? what's your excuse for that?" Her voice, thick and fierce in such a way that he so rarely heard from her.

"Sakura, I'm sorr—"

Her hand clutched the edge of the bed and the metal crumpled under her grip as her anger unfurled. "Fuck that, Kakashi! You're sorry? Is that what you were going to say? Sorry for what? Allowing that piece of shit to take his perverted anger out on us? Sorry that you were willing to die for a ghost? Sorry for giving up? You're not sorry. Not even remotely sorry, so don't even give me that bull shit!"

Kakashi shrank back into the supportive pillows. He had never seen Sakura this angry before, and only once before had her anger been directed at him—at the end of the seduction mission that seemed like it was a year ago rather than just a few days ago.

She took a few steps away from him since she couldn't stand being so close to him any longer. Her hands balled into tight fists and she began to pace back and forth beside his bed.

Her anger only intensified each time she looked at his sorry figure. Approaching the chair that she had spent countless hours resting in, worrying for his life, she couldn't stand the sight of it any longer. In a fit of rage she kicked it against the wall, allowing it to smash to pieces and leaving a sizable dent in the wall.

She felt like her heart was breaking into pieces just like that chair.

With the loud and abrupt noise, Shizune and Genma rushed into the room. Sakura pointedly ignored them, instead, continuing to focus all of her attention on Kakashi.

Shizune moved to try to calm Sakura down, but Genma placed a hand out, stopping her from approaching them.

"They need to get this out. I don't think she'll hurt him—much. Plus didn't you tell me not five minutes ago to keep my nose out of other people's business?" he said quietly, trying not to gain any attention from the arguing couple. They slowly backed out of the room, but stood outside the door just in case either of their friends needed them.

"Sakura, of course I'm sorry. I'm sorry you were brought into the middle of that mess—"

Flinching at his words, she snapped at him, once more she didn't give him a chance to finish what he was saying.

"That mess? Are you kidding me?" she screamed at him. "That's all you're fucking sorry for? Not that you didn't care if he killed you? Do you hate yourself—your life that much, that you're not sorry for giving up?"

"No, of course not! But what was I supposed to do? Fight him?" He tried to argue with her.

"YES! OF COURSE!" She bellowed at him. She was clenching her hands so tightly that her arms were starting to hurt. It was easier to feed into the anger than it was to fall into the pain and hurt.

"We were tied up, Sakura, you know it was next to impossible—" He was cut off by a coughing fit. His exhaustion and weariness was already showing. He hadn't even been awake for a day yet, before she blew up on him.

"You gave up on yourself and on me, Kakashi. Regardless of being bound. You gave into him the moment you found out who he was, you gave up. And it was sickening to watch," she said as she stood beside him, arms shaking with fury.

Her voice was cold and unfeeling, which to him was worse than screaming and shouting at him. It hurt him to have her speak like that, which could mean that she was starting to give up on them. And that terrified him.

"What did you expect Sakura? Being held hostage isn't about talking out the fucking differences and living happily-ever-after with your abductor!" he finally shouted back at her. He was already sick and tired of her picking at his open wounds. He was still recovering, barely awake and he wasn't in the mood for a verbal spar with her.

He felt like no matter what he would say, she wouldn't listen to him, and nothing was getting through to her. And he knew it was all his fault. Seeing her this upset with him because he failed to show her how much he cared, just tore him up all over again. Physical pain and torture were easier to deal with than seeing her so hurt from his own carelessness.

He didn't want to argue with her at all. This was not what he had envisioned would happen if he didn't die at the hands of Takeo. He wanted a happy life with Sakura and he was sure he could get her to see it his way, if she'd just give him a chance.

"Fuck you Kakashi! Go to hell!" she yelled once more as she turned and walked away.

He lunged out and grabbed her wrist, stopping her from leaving. "Wait, please. Let's talk about this Sakura," he begged tiredly. His quick jerky movements hurt more than he let on, but he was set on trying to make things work between them.

"Let go!" she demanded harshly, as he refused to slacken his grip. With a determined tug, she finally broke free from his hand. He reached out to capture her hand again, but she slapped it away. "Don't touch me," she seethed at him. Sakura pushed past a surprised Genma and Shizune, not giving them a chance to speak.

Kakashi pulled back as if he'd been slapped in the face. It hurt him so much to see her so angry at him. It was more devastating than he thought to see her turn away from him as she walked off. But he couldn't get up and follow her. He was still too weak from the ordeal and he knew that his legs wouldn't hold him. He didn't think she'd listen even if he was able to catch up to her.

Genma and Shizune entered his room and went to stand beside his bed.

Genma noticed how Kakashi was still staring at the closed door where Sakura had bolted through. "Don't worry, she'll come around. She's been scared for you, and that's a lot to handle, on top of everything else."

"What's happened since I've been out? And how long have I been out for?"

"Nine days. And as for the rest, sorry buddy, but that's above my clearance level. Only Naruto, Sakura and Tsunade know the details. All I know is that you came in beaten up bad, and it's been a rough time trying to get you back on your feet." Genma watched as the energy seemed to be sapped out of his friend. "Sakura has been watching over you for days, being your personal medic and taking care of your every need. Hang in there, you'll get a chance to talk to her and work things out."

Kakashi had noticed Shizune checking him over and making sure his vitals were still normal. "You need rest, Kakashi. Don't worry about anything else right now, just focus on rest and then we can see about releasing you in a day or two. I'm sure she'll be cooled off by then."

Kakashi rubbed a hand down his weary face. He noticed that he not only wasn't wearing his mask, but he had stubble that covered his chin and cheeks. He was thankful that neither of his friends were making a big deal of him being maskless, but he began to feel exposed without something covering his face.

Looking at the side table, he noticed several of his things placed there, including a mask. Reaching over, he grabbed it tiredly and pulled it over his head.

His heart gripped at the thought of her. It was not the morning after that he had envisioned. But there wasn't much he could do about that now. He would just have to wait until he was out of the hospital to approach her. He would fix things between them—he had to.

* * *

Her knees grew damp as she continued to rest on the grass before Rin's grave. The sun had begun to set off in the distance and Sakura felt as if time was setting on her relationship with Kakashi.

Recalling the progression of the downfall of her relationship with him, broke her heart all over again.

For some reason, she had hoped for some sort of epiphany about Kakashi as she chatted with Rin's grave—but nothing had come to her.

She hung her head as she thought about how she should be used to another failure of a relationship—but what was worse, was that she was still so deeply in love with him.

In love with yet another broken man—who didn't trust her.

Picking herself up, she turned to go to her empty home.

She would get over this with time.

Time heals all wounds doesn't it?

* * *

I am on schedule and on track to have this story finished before xmas. Cheer me on and help me finish it with a bang! Thank you for all of those who reviewed this story and my other stories so far! Each review truly encourages me to write more!

Thanks!


	21. Something New Again

Here it is! I really hope the end pleases all of you! It's not perfect, but life isn't either. What it is, is massive 14+K. The epilogue will be out next week.

Thank you so much to my amazing beta **Sarcastic Mommy!** I'm so grateful to you!

A big special thanks goes out to **Alien** who has put up with all of my random questions and allows me to bug her nonstop about this or that. I adore you my dear, thank you so very much for being the most amazing person to me! Love ya!

What a journey this has been for me! I've learned so much and this story has been on my mind every day, usually for several hours, and for 22 months. I didn't realize what type of Pandora Box I had opened when I started this story. I've grown as a person and as a writer as this story progressed. Between this story and EVERYONE who has interacted with me about it, I've learned, healed and I think I've become a better person too.

So thank you to _EVERYONE_ for being a part of this adventure with me! I'm grateful to all of you!

* * *

It had only been that morning when, in front of Nohara Rin's grave, she told Naruto that she was all cried out. But that had been a lie.

She had been barely able to keep a blank face as she left the graveyard and walked through the streets. But when she reached the safety of her home, behind closed doors, she broke down once more.

In waves of anguish, her tears came pouring out. With the quiet agonizing cries that she tried to keep to herself, her heart split apart.

The lies, deceit and half truths that lay between her and Kakashi were too much for her to handle right now—mentally and physically. Falling to the ground in her entryway, she sobbed into her hands, struggling to breathe between the quaking movements as her body shook.

This whole situation seemed too familiar—coming home upset and crying. Their relationship has had so many ups and downs, that she was exhausted. She couldn't take it anymore.

Her _heart_ couldn't take the pain anymore.

To know that he loved her was no longer enough. Love without trust wasn't the type of love that she wanted.

Sakura was furious with him for lying to her and hiding things from her. And important things—life threatening things. She couldn't understand for the life of her why he would decide to keep such vital information from her.

But to her it meant that he didn't trust her. That he didn't value her as a partner in all aspects. How could he? Actions always spoke louder than words, didn't they?

Picking herself up in a brief moment of respite from sobbing, she got into a pair of sweatpants, a comfortable sweater and made herself a cup of tea. Moving to the couch, she decided that it brought up less memories than her bed would certainly conjure.

Her bed still reminded her too much of their last night together. The passion, the love, the dream of spending the night—every night—in his arms was the thing she wanted most in life. It was simply too much for her to face tonight.

Too much for her heart to deal with right now.

She didn't think she'd get a good night's sleep on the couch, but she knew she wouldn't sleep at all in her own bed.

Turning on her rarely used TV, she flicked it to some random channel that was showing some sort of historical documentary about their nation. It was the background noise she needed to distract herself from overthinking.

She wished she could just turn her brain off for a few days and not feel anything, especially the sorrow and betrayal that kept creeping up on her. It felt as if she couldn't choose between the hurt and the pain since both were so strong.

Tired, but too tired to sleep, she stayed up for hours. The light from the TV was the only light she bothered to have on. She dozed on and off throughout the night, content in the blank stillness that settled over her mind, but at the same time, not allowing herself to really fall asleep since she was too scared.

She was scared of the nightmares and the horrors from her time with Takeo or the beautiful dreams of happy times with Kakashi. Neither would be welcomed in her head at the moment.

Numbness and distractions were the only things that helped her get through the night: they were the only things she needed right now.

Throughout the night, the programs shifted from one to the next, creating a mindless atmosphere for Sakura to distract herself with. And by the time she knew it, the sun started to rise and the birds started their incessant chirping. She thought she heard a knock at her door, but she wasn't in the mood for visitors, so she simply ignored it, sure that they would go away.

But when Naruto slid her patio door open and slipped inside, she gave him a weak smile. He was carrying a covered dish, which he set on her coffee table, then sat right beside her. He slung an arm around her shoulder and pulled her against him. With a brotherly peck to her head, she let him hug her.

"Sakura, it's okay to be sad, upset and angry. I'm here for you," he said as he got comfortable on the couch. "Hinata sends her love and breakfast—which is the best kind of love."

"Thanks Naruto. You're a good friend, and Hinata too. I'm lucky to have you guys in my life."

She rested her head heavily against his big shoulder. It was so easy to lean on him whenever she needed, and he was always there when she needed someone.

"Do you want to talk about anything?" he asked carefully.

"Not really."

Naruto paused trying to think of what to say next. He squeezed her side when he came up with something.

"How about we go down to one of the training grounds, I can make loads of bunshins and we can have a good match? How does that sound?"

"I don't know, Naruto. I'm tired, and I don't think sparring would help right now."

"Oh, okay. Whatever you want, Sakura," he said, conceding to being at a loss of what else to say and do.

"Thank you though, Naruto. Maybe later." Sakura knew that he was unsure of how to help her, but him just being here was enough. Without a doubt, she knew that she could always rely on Naruto.

"Is there anything I can do?"

"Not really. Just being here is enough for now."

"Okay, we can sit for a bit, but then we're going for a walk. Sitting all day isn't good, and I'm sure you know that too. Plus we could go get some dango while we're out. My treat!"

Naruto's positivity always brought a smile to her face. He could turn any sour mood into something more upbeat.

They spent the next hour watching TV. Once that show was finished, Naruto picked her up and brought her to the washroom and told her to get changed. He told her that while she got ready, he'd heat up her food for lunch.

Grudgingly she did as she was told. Normally, she would have stayed holed up in her place for the whole day, but with Naruto by her side, she felt brave enough to face the world.

Entering the kitchen she saw the plate of food Hinata had kindly sent over, and of course Naruto had a container of instant ramen. Sakura always kept some on hand for him, since he was easily pleased with such simple food.

He spent nearly the entire day with her, which turned out to be exactly what she needed to get her mind off of everything. Despite him being the Nanadaime, he was still the loveable goofball that she grew up with.

Around dinner time, Sakura was unceremoniously dragged back to his home. Hinata asked no questions and just welcomed her there. It was another good way to help her keep her mind off of everything.

It was a little hard to see such a loving couple, but she couldn't be mad at the sweetness between Naruto and Hinata, just envious that she lost a chance at something like that.

Sakura thanked them for dinner as she left late that evening. She walked home along the dark streets, and contemplated life. When it all came down to it, she just wanted something like what Naruto and Hinata shared. The ease of their relationship, the support and trust they showed each other, it was something she wished for with all her soul. They loved each other with all of their being.

And Sakura was so envious.

She was still so mad at Kakashi. His lack of trust, his deceit and his willingness to just give up. The latter was something that would eat away at her. Trust could be built, but that desire to give up everything for ghosts of the past was a flaw so deeply rooted in a person that she couldn't fight against it.

Sakura knew that Kakashi had many ghosts from his past. Any shinobi worth his salt would have made many enemies over the years, especially a Kage. His past didn't bother her, since all shinobi had one. It was more his reaction when he came face to face with it.

Naruto had told her that Takeo was securely locked away, and would never get out again. She had been shocked to hear his name again spoken so soon after everything that he'd done. But she was glad he was gone from her world. At this point, she never wanted to see him or even hear his name again.

But now, he was one of her ghosts as well.

Arriving at a dark home, she thought that she needed to reclaim her life once more. She needed to remove all the lingering traces of Kakashi. And the best way to do that was a deep clean.

Between spells of moodiness Sakura cleaned like she had Nine-Tails nipping at her heels. She tore apart her bedroom, removing the last traces of Kakashi and tidied as she went. She put all of his things in a box that she hid in the back of her closet. She wasn't petty enough to throw them out, but she didn't need the constant visual reminder of him.

Bit by bit, hour by hour, she cleaned, leaving not a speck of dust anywhere in her in her bedroom and bathroom. When it was late into the night, and her energy thoroughly sapped, she crashed in her own bed again, hoping that she was too tired to dream of anything at all.

When morning came around, she was grateful that she had been too exhausted to have a single thought throughout the night. She woke up ready to jump back into cleaning.

Sakura powered through a deep clean of the rest of her home, and even fit in a sparring match with Hinata, who had asked so politely at dinner the night before. Sakura couldn't refuse her gentle proposal. Hinata said that she felt out of practice because she hadn't sparred with anyone since before she got pregnant, and Naruto refused to attack his own wife.

And it turns out it was exactly what Sakura needed.

Between cleaning everything and the spar with Hinata she didn't think she would fall apart at the mention of Kakashi's name anymore. She didn't think she'd ever be completely over him. She had liked him for quite some time, long before they started sleeping together. And it was possible that her feelings ran deeper than his did, which didn't surprise her since she was one to wear her heart on her sleeve.

He was accomplished, well known as being fair, a veteran of two great shinobi wars, and a retired Kage. He was also funny, sweet and lovable, despite his broken pieces. How could she not have fallen so deeply in love with him?

She wanted to continue to love him and be in love with him, but she couldn't see how it could all work out. Sometimes, no matter how much you want something, it doesn't mean you'll get it. And Sakura was sure this was one of those times. She was sure that they should just stop and call it quits before either of them got hurt even more.

Crawling into bed with bittersweet memories of her time with Kakashi, she fell into a restless sleep as she barely kept tears at bay. She guessed she was wrong about not falling apart at his name, instead the thought of their broken relationship was enough.

* * *

From the second Sakura had furiously stormed out of his hospital room, Kakashi had worried incessantly. He had done his best to plead with Tsunade to be released sooner, but she had been stubborn to do so and kept him hospitalised for another two days.

All he wanted to do was rush over to Sakura and make things better between them. He knew she'd shout at him, likely throw things at him, and maybe even take a few swings at him. All of which he'd gladly take if it meant that they were in the same room, trying to work things out.

The longer he was apart from her, the more dread filled him. Dread that he wouldn't ever be able to fix things between them. There was a kind of desperation circling around him as he continued to harass Tsunade into releasing him.

Finally, the Godaime let out a frustrated sigh and told him that she had planned to let him out in the morning and not so late at night, but because he was being such a pest, she'd sign the release forms if he promised to head straight home and rest. To which he readily agreed. However, he wasn't about to admit to her that he'd started seeing Sakura's home as his own. So the devious play on words worked fine for him.

The moment that she signed his paperwork, he darted out of his hospital bed and moved to the washroom to change into a set of clothing that Genma had brought him. When the door closed to the little room, he slumped into the counter. He hadn't felt this weak in a long time, but he wasn't about to show Tsunade that he was anything other than the picture of perfect health.

And his weakened state wasn't going to stop him from immediately heading over to Sakura's home. Kakashi washed up and changed as quickly as he physically could—which meant it was a little on the slow side.

His first steps outside the hospital gave him the short but intense feeling of freedom and hope. But it was dark out... close to 10 at night. Kakashi paused in the highly lit front of the hospital, debating if he should go home instead. He didn't want to wake her.

But fighting for their relationship, their future, was worth being woken for, wasn't it?

He had been upset and even hurt by what she'd said in their fight, but that didn't mean that he suddenly stopped loving her. Despite all the negative emotions that plagued his head minute after minute, nothing could budge his mind and heart from loving Sakura.

Kakashi would never give up on her, and he wanted a chance to make that clear. He had never felt this way about anyone else in his life. They've seen each other at their best and at their worst and he still wanted her, needed her, needed to have her in his life.

Sakura had become his every waking thought and he loved her with every fiber of his body, heart and soul. And if he could just make her see that, hopefully she'd give him a second chance. He had to try.

Knowing that on his own he wouldn't get there fast enough for his liking, he summoned Bull, the only dog big enough to support his weight.

"Hey there, old friend. Think you can help me get to Sakura's?" Kakashi asked.

Bull shifted himself to move his large body against Kakashi's thighs. Awkwardly letting his furry friend carry his weight, they reached her home in good time. With a powerful jump, Bull brought them to her balcony where he gently dropped Kakashi off, and with a pat on his head and a thanks, he poofed away.

As quietly as he could, he unlocked the balcony door and slipped inside. Out of habit, he pulled down his mask as he came into her home. Almost immediately he was taken aback by her natural scent that permeated the room. His heart jumped to his throat at his desire to get close to her despite his mind being filled with anguished thoughts of never being able to do even that.

What if she rejected him? What if he never got to hold her again? To kiss her again? To watch her eyes light up and her face colour when he told her he loved her?

What if she had already stopped loving him?

He couldn't wait any longer—regardless of how mad he thought she could be. He couldn't help himself. The draw she had on him was undeniable and unstoppable —but that's what love was. He was so helplessly and hopelessly in love with her.

He had to stop allowing his mind to spiral into despair. The only way he was going to work things out was to face her and try to talk to her.

Quietly moving to her bedroom, he breathed a sigh of relief when he saw her curled up under her sheets, fast asleep. She was facing the rest of the room and him as he approached. He knelt by her bed, and spent a few quiet moments just watching the woman he loved. Every huff of breath, every flicker of movement filled his heart with yearning. Her hand had snuck out from beneath her blanket and hung off the side of the bed. He reached out and delicately brushed the back of it, longingly, wishing it was placed on his skin. He couldn't resist bending his head to graze it with a soft kiss.

"Kakashi," she sighed, still half asleep.

Under the cover of darkness, he felt as though he could say the things that lay deep in his heart, the things that he didn't want anyone but her to hear or know.

"I'm sorry Sakura. I don't know what to do. I want to be with you, I don't know how to stop," he whispered achingly. He brought her hand to his face and nuzzled it. His breath hitched when she cupped his face, gently stroking her thumb across his lips. Her tender touch lightened his heart.

"Kakashi, I know you're sorry. But I can't do this right now," she sighed. "You lied and hid things from me. And what's more is you were so willing to give up your life—so quickly, so easily. You didn't think about what that would do to me. And as much as I love you and will always love you, I need space and time." Tears were welling up in her eyes. In the quiet of the night, it was hard to hear anything else but the emotion between them. She wanted nothing more than to curl up in his arms and bask in his warmth and scent.

Taking a deep breath, she tried to gather herself and finish what she had to say. "I don't think I can be with someone who would so easily sacrifice their life, our future, to ghosts of the past."

His heart faltered once more when tears spilled from her reddened eyes. All he wanted to do was take her into his arms and tell her that they could work things out in time and that everything would be okay. But it was clear to him that he'd lost his chance for such indulgences.

"Please leave. I can't do this now… I need time," she said weakly to him as his heart shattered in his chest. More tears came rolling down her cheeks and onto her sheets.

He would give her the space she wanted. Once more, he took her hand and turned it over so that the palm was facing up, and kissed it again, gently and lovingly.

"I love you with everything I am, Sakura. I will prove that to you." His eyes were intense with conviction as they bore into hers. He gently placed her hand back onto her bed and disappeared into the night.

She didn't hold back the tears now, as she cupped her hand against her chest. She quietly sobbed, wishing that things could be different. Sakura didn't want to hurt him, but she had to protect herself.

Last week's crisis had broken more than just him.

* * *

Kakashi sat alone in his apartment—blinds drawn closed, no lights on, just sitting quietly at his kitchen table in the dark silence. His body ached in ways he never thought possible, but thought it was right: he deserved it. The pain reminded him that he was one of the ones still alive.

He wanted to… actually he didn't know what he wanted to do. What could he do? Sakura needed time and he felt lost without her. He was still off on leave from missions, his place was spotless, there were no errands important enough to run, and he couldn't bring himself to even read. There was nothing that could pull him away from the darkness in his own mind.

All he could think about was Sakura. Everything he wanted to do, involved her. She had permeated so much of his life, he was now lost without her. So he sat and waited for something, anything—even though he wasn't sure what he was waiting for.

He wasn't sure how long he sat at his kitchen table when he heard a knock at his door. His heart quickened for a moment, thinking, wishing that it was Sakura. Hope filled his heart as he moved as quickly as his body would allow him to reach his door. When he opened it and saw Genma standing there, he couldn't help but feel the letdown of who his visitor was.

"Yeah, it's nice to see you too buddy," Genma said cantankerously, as he watched the emotions fall from his friend's face. He didn't wait to be invited in, he just breezed past Kakashi and move to the kitchen. Without asking, he pulled out two beers, flicked on the lights and sat down.

"What are you doing here?" Kakashi asked as he moved to reclaim his own chair. "Isn't it a little early to be drinking beer?" he asked as he glanced at the clock that showed it to be a bit after 11 in the morning.

"It's never too early for a drink with a friend," he said as he took a swig of his beer and stared at his despondent drinking buddy. "Now, why are you sitting here in the dark? Why aren't you cuddling up to your pink-haired lover?"

Even just mentioning her forced the air from his lungs and slumped his shoulders. Kakashi didn't have it in him to talk about her just yet. "Genma, what do you want?"

"You think I wouldn't come visit you? I don't let friends fight battles alone. So what demons are we slaying today?"

"Thanks Genma, but I think I'm on my own this time."

"You really don't get it, do you?" he asked incredulously, taking a long drink from his beer. "If you had actually died and given up so easily to a loser like Takeo, then I probably wouldn't forgive you either," Genma said bluntly. "But you survived, and now we can get on with life."

"She doesn't feel the same way. She asked me to stay away from her." It seems that Genma wasn't going to let sleeping dogs lie. He took a long drink to help numb the heartache of even thinking about her. Medics would likely angrily strap him back to a bed if they knew he was drinking only days after being released from the hospital.

"And why are you listening to her? Women sometimes say one thing and mean something completely different. You know when they say 'I'm fine' or 'nothing is wrong'? Lies. Don't believe them. Something is wrong and you have to man up and figure it out."

"She doesn't trust me anymore. I don't think she loves me anymore either, and I don't know how to change it."

"Sitting here on your ass isn't going to do you any good. Sure, she said 'leave me alone' but you know that she wants you still—loves you still. Love like yours doesn't just suddenly disappear. Plus, Shizune told me how mopey she's been. You have to figure it out and fix this."

Kakashi finally gave in and accepted talking about this, and even approached being as vulnerable as he could with a trusted friend. "So what do I do? How do I fix it?"

"If I knew that, I'd be the next Kage." Genma paused as he took a long drink from his beer. "But sitting here, doing nothing is only going to get you nowhere. You're the genius. Find a way to talk to her, and don't let her push you away. Regardless of how mad she is, she is head over heels for you—dammit if I know why though," he grinned at the subdued man.

"Good pep-talk, Kakashi. And thanks for the beer," Genma said as he stood up from the table and started walking away. "I'll catch you later," he said as he opened the door and left.

With the click of the latch, he was alone again, but now with even more on his mind.

He agreed with Genma: it was up to him to fix it. Even though he wasn't sure how to do that yet. All he knew is that sitting here was not the answer, he needed to think, to find solutions and work at getting her back by earning her trust again.

* * *

Sakura sat in her office, catching up on paperwork. It was her first day back , and she was only a few hours in but she was already exhausted. Even though the mental drain from the past three weeks was taking a toll on her, she couldn't keep postponing work forever. Hiding in her home wasn't the answer. She wanted and had to get on with work and life.

She had spent her time visiting with friends, going to therapy and keeping out of sight from Kakashi. She couldn't bear to bump into him, since her resolve would likely crumble with one look at him. She found no solution when thinking of how to fix their situation. Even now, she knew that her actions were hurting him, and they were hurting her too. But what else could she do? What other options were there for her?

Sighing to herself as her mind played the situation over and over again in her head, she closed her eyes in exhaustion. She couldn't think of anything else she could do. The therapist had taught her tricks to stop over analyzing and ruminating on situations that were in the past and out of her control. Sometimes it worked—sometimes it didn't.

Work was a healthy distraction for her. And she was glad for it—even paperwork. Anything to keep her mind from going down that rabbit hole. So, she spent most of her shift concentrating on the pile of documents that stacked up while she was off.

When her door opened without any knock, she figured it was Shizune checking in with her—but when she saw that it was Genma and not her office mate, she was surprised.

"Sorry Genma, she's not here right now."

"I know that. I'm here for you. Here. I've heard you like these," he said as he put a little container of dango on her desk.

To say that she was surprised was an understatement. "Thank you, but what are these for?"

"I know you've been through hell and I thought you could use a little sweetening up before I say my piece." He paused and flicked the toothpick back and forth. "He's been through a different type of hell than you, even though it feels the same. Give him a chance to make it up to you. He doesn't know how to be happy with someone. So take this as a bribe to give him an opportunity to at least talk with you." He smiled handsomely at her, trying his best to charm her into agreeing.

"Genma, it's more complicated than that," she sighed, a bit uncomfortable with the pressure he was putting on her.

"Of course it is, but he's worth it. Listen, since I've met him, he has carried more pain and suffering than a thousand people could ever bear. He has been betrayed, deceived and hurt, over and over again. Believe me when I say that he has already crossed hell. The only time I ever saw him truly peaceful and happy was when he was with you. You're his only reason to still be alive. So give him a chance."

"Genma, I—"

He held up a hand stopping her. "Just think about it while you eat your dango." He pointed at her treat, waiting for her to open the package and begin eating one. Obviously he hoped that if she ate her dessert, she would accept his meager bribe. It was just a coincidence that she was hungry and she really loved dango.

"Good, now that that's settled, I'll be leaving. I'm tired of being in the middle of your tiff."

A small smile played on her lips as she watched Genma leave. It was odd to think of him playing buffer and match-maker between her and Kakashi, but she was glad that Kakashi had such a good friend—glad that they both had a friend like Genma.

Everything he said was true, and she knew it. And perhaps in time, she could forgive Kakashi, but for the time being, it was all too raw.

She enjoyed her sweet treat as she worked on the neverending files for the rest of the day. She didn't have to figure it out this second—especially with Genma giving her even more to think about.

She just had to take it one day at a time and figure out what was best for her and her heart.

* * *

It had been a few days since Genma had visited her in her office with his sweet bribe. While she gave a lot of thought to what he said, she was still unsure of so many things. Her anger had cooled drastically, settling into hurt, fear of being hurt and slight trust issues with Kakashi.

After several discussions with the therapist, she had come to the conclusion that her anger had just been an outlet for her fears. They spoke at length about her issues and how she turned her fears into anger and then directed it at people she loved and who loved her back, which she knew wasn't healthy. It was something that she wanted and had to work on for herself. She knew that she had been quick to jump to conclusions during the fight in the hospital, and she owed him an apology for that.

But at the same time, she was sure she wouldn't be able to handle seeing him face to face. She wasn't sure if she could manage that, since it would likely break her resolve, which is why she was doing her best to avoid him completely.

During the quiet moments alone, her mind would wander and she'd find herself wanting nothing more than to find him and have him wrap his arms around her while pressing her nose into his chest. Breathing in his scent, feeling his strong arms around her was what she dreamt of most. His warmth, his strength, his love—she missed it all. She wished with all of her heart that she could go back to right before Takeo had taken her, and then never go through that hell at all. If only it was that easy.

Regardless of her needs and wants, she needed to get groceries and they weren't going to get themselves. And she needed to get them before the storm hit. So she plucked up her courage and headed out. Each time her mind rebelled and tried to overwhelm her with questions and worries, she did her best to shush it.

Sakura still didn't know what to do, or how to handle the situation. Her heart said fix things with Kakashi immediately, while her head told her to wait a moment. He was still a mess and might do the same thing again.

It all came down to the fact that if she was going to allow herself to love him, openly and without constraint, she needed to make sure that he wouldn't break her trust the same way. She wanted him to fight for their relationship as much as she was prepared to.

She felt that perhaps in a few days she could approach him for a chat. Her courage was growing and she knew that it was only a matter of time before she felt confident enough to have that important conversation. She just needed to keep her head down and focus on the task in front of her: which was getting groceries so that she could eat lunch otherwise she'd—

Keeping her head down failed her this time. She ran headlong into the back of an unsuspecting bystander.

Feeling absolutely mortified, she quickly bowed her head in apology. "I'm so sorry! I wasn't watching where I was going. I am so sorry for bumping into you! Please excuse me—"

"Sakura?" came the familiar voice.

Oh god. He was here. She had bumped into him. It was too soon. Too early to see him, she thought as her mind raced.

She looked up at him and saw him eyeing her curiously, while she stared up at him with a complete loss for words. Despite the grey clouds hanging over them, he looked good. Healed and healthy, looking down at her with his beautiful charcoal eyes.

He had sensed her presence the second he came within the vicinity of the marketplace. He wasn't sure if he was ready for the face to face confrontation, or vice-versa, but it was too late now. She was right in front of him, after literally running into him. Fate seemed to be making him its bitch today.

"Kakashi!" she squeaked. "You're here!"

He instinctively reached up and scratched at his head, feeling completely unsure of how to speak to her.

"Hi..." he started. He was really at a loss of what to say. What do you say in a moment like this? _Yeah, you know me. I was nearly beaten to death, and you kind of saw it all happen, and then you got mad at me because I kind of gave up and let the guy do it—despite being chained, sealed and completely unable to fight back._ Yeah, he didn't think that would go over well—so he went with plan B.

"How are you Sakura?" he stuttered out weakly.

"Ummm... I'm doing okay. Just getting some food. To eat. Groceries. You?" she finished as she stumbled with what to say.

She couldn't take her eyes off of him. He looked so good. So handsome, just like she thought he always had looked.

Kakashi internally sighed at the awkward attempts at small talk between them. "I'm doing okay. I think I'll have clearance to start missions the day after tomorrow." _Idiot, she doesn't want to hear about that,_ he berated himself.

"Oh, that's good, I guess," she said quietly. She was unsure how she truly felt about him heading out on a mission after only a month of healing from injuries that had him knocking at death's door. It just felt too soon to her.

"How's work at the hospital?"

Of course he knew that she had already started back there. He always seemed to know where she was or when she had a shift. It was sweet in a way that she felt was just him. It was endearing and just the way he was.

"It's okay. I'm still catching up on the paperwork gathered during... my time away. It never seems to end," she chatted idly.

They walked for a time in awkward but companionable silence. Sometimes she would indicate that she needed to enter a store, and he always followed. She knew that even just seeing him and being in his company helped soothe some of those frayed nerves she had felt since she last saw him. She figured it must be the same for him, since he seemed reluctant to leave her side.

She had gotten everything on her list, plus a few extra things, which wrapped up what she needed to do for the day. Sakura turned to leave the market and noticed that Kakashi was still at her side, waiting for her.

Taking a look down at the top of her rosy head, he knew this was a chance for him to try his luck again. His hand itched to grab hers and just hold it. He missed having a physical connection with her.

"Can I... I walk you home?" he asked more quietly than he expected of himself. Hopefully she wouldn't refuse such a simple request, even from him.

She looked up at him from the corner of her eye and saw that he was conflicted and nervous about everything, just as much as she felt she was. But she noticed that he was much cuter doing it than she suspected she was. She couldn't resist him, and she didn't want to.

"Of course, Kakashi. I'd like that very much." She saw that he kept his focus straight ahead, but she could tell by his body language that her response made him happy.

Without asking, he reached down and in a quick and easy motion he took half of her bags out of her hands. He placed his other hand into his pocket, trying his best to replicate his usual stance.

He thought to himself that there was no time like the present to start talking to her, opening up, and breaching that gap between them.

"I've started seeing someone," he reported as casually as he could.

Immediately Sakura's heart plummeted as she faltered in her steps, nearly falling over. He quickly reached out and caught her from falling flat on her face.

She couldn't help the look of shock and hurt that filled her eyes.

"What? Already?" she asked breathlessly. She braced a hand against him, while her eyes lowered from his gaze. She couldn't bear looking at him, not with the hurt that suddenly filled her heart and soul. It amazed her how such a simple statement could totally shatter her. Her shoulders slumped as she pulled her hand back from his warmth, preparing the walls around her heart again.

Kakashi saw her reaction and became confused. He backtracked his brain for a moment to recall what he said to have her react in such a way. "Wait, no. I'm not seeing anyone else... you know, romantically. I mean I'm seeing someone... a therapist."

She quickly raised her head in surprise, catching his eyes with her own. There was a light dusting of colour along the edges of his mask. Their faces were so close...if only his mask wasn't there, and they weren't in public.

"Oh...Oh! That's great... right?" It was her turn to be shy. She realized that more often than naught, most didn't appreciate the opinion of a therapist.

"To be honest, it's long overdue. And I don't know if I'll be the perfect patient, but I'm willing to give it a shot and try to learn from him."

Straightening herself, she placed a hand on his chest and smiled up at him. She could have sworn she felt his heart jump into her hand. "That's really good Kakashi. I hope he's able to help you. It's a big step, and I'm proud of you." She gave him the brightest smile she could.

Turning around she continued the leisurely walk back to her apartment.

"Umm, yeah... I guess," he said shyly. His confidence wasn't strong at the moment, not when it came to her and their relationship. But he was glad for this chance to be close to her again. There wasn't a single thing about her that he didn't miss.

They continued to her apartment, as he soaked in every second of her. When they reached the main entrance into her building, she indicated to him to follow her up to her place, which had him enthusiastically climbing up the three flights of stairs.

With her hands feeling sweaty, her heart racing, she turned to him when they reached her unit. "Would you like to come in?"

His heart leapt into his throat as his stomach filled with butterflies. He didn't think he'd ever been this nervous, even as a teenager.

Nodding his head, since he found his mouth suddenly dry, he followed her in. Kakashi was all too eager to be alone with her in her home. It was hard being so casual with his feelings in public, but in private he wanted to find the courage to tell her everything. She deserved nothing less.

She slipped off her shoes and moved to the kitchen, bringing her bags with her, and immediately started putting things away. He followed her like a lost puppy, pulling down his mask as he went but unsure of what else to do, unsure of what she wanted of him—of what she would allow him to do. But he was willing to do anything to heal the fissure between them.

"Would you like a cup of tea?" she asked as she continued to put away her things. She kept her back to him, fidgeting with every move. She hadn't expected to ask him to stay longer, but before she knew it, it was out of her mouth and the kettle was already in her hands. She missed the casual rhythm that they used to have and she wanted it back.

"Okay. Thank you."

Everything felt more awkward than it ever had been between them. Kakashi felt so weird about the whole predicament. More than ever, he didn't know what was expected of him. In this situation, his tactical expertise was absolutely useless. The only thing he could do was something he'd be trained to never do: show his vulnerabilities. He had to stop avoiding being open and vulnerable.

It would be terrifying to bare everything, but he knew that it would be the only way forward. And he figured it would be easier to talk to Sakura than it had been to open up to the therapist.

But what was the first step? He stared at her back as she puttered with the kettle and tea. She didn't look any different from before. She was still the woman he loved and wanted to spend his life with.

Kakashi hoped that would be enough.

Sakura filled the kettle and turned it on, keeping her hands busy and delaying turning around and facing him. She didn't think it through when she invited him in and then asked him to stay longer. The two sides of her mind were fighting with each other: half of her wanted him here, where they could discuss things and spend time together, while her other half was terrified and not ready for this.

But regardless of what she wanted and was ready for, he was here now. She was suddenly more jittery now than she had been at the beginning of their relationship. They both had deep feelings for each other that hadn't dissipated, despite the trials they've been through. But it was so complicated to her, and their history wasn't easily forgotten—not that she wanted to forget all of it. Just the rough parts.

She'd cherish the happy times they had shared together. They were certainly some of the best in her life. She wanted nothing more than to have more joyous times with him throughout the rest of her life, but only if they could fix this issue between them.

"Sakura, I..." he started and stopped. He was at a complete loss of what to say or even how to start. How do you begin to qualify what happened?

Everything about her drew him towards her. He moved to stand directly behind her as she continued to reach up and put things away. He wasn't sure if it was the right thing to do, but he couldn't stop his hands from reaching out and resting cautiously on her hips.

He noticed how she froze in place until he started to turn her around to face him. He stopped when they were face to face, or as much as they could be, since she was a head shorter than he was. It seemed impossible to pull his hands away from her hips, so he stopped trying and just enjoyed the feel of her in his hands once more.

He could feel her warmth through her clothes and it was addictive and as heady as he remembered. He took a half-step towards her until their bodies were nearly flush against each other. He was encouraged by her calm reaction and subtle sigh—it was more than he could have asked for.

Bending his head down until his forehead rested against the top of her head, he paused there while breathing in her comforting scent. The stress and anxiety drained out of him just by being able to hold her and be this close to her once more.

"Gods I've missed this..." he whispered against her silken strands. "Please..." he pleaded, "I'm sorry. Please give me the chance to explain things and talk."

His heart leapt into his throat when she reached up and circled her arms around him, with one threading into the hairs at the back of his neck. She tipped her head back, angling her lips to brush across his cheek.

"Okay," she answered quietly.

Unable to help himself, he wrapped his arms tightly around her, pulling her firmly against himself, forcing her head to shift and press against his neck.

"Thank you," he mumbled softly.

"We need this. We need to talk and get things out in the open. Everything Kakashi. No more secrets, no more half truths. I want it all."

He sighed as he felt her breath whisper against his neck. "I can do that. I want to do that," he ended emphatically. "I want to tell you everything, not only because you deserve it, but because I _want_ to tell you. I want you to know everything about me."

"I like the sound of that, Kakashi." She nuzzled his neck and hugged him tighter.

"I want to tell you everything because I want you to know and be a part of my life. Sakura, I've missed you so much. I want to fix things between us because you're the most important person to me."

"You're the most important person to me too, Kakashi." She shifted her hands from his neck to his chest. "Will you let me check something?"

"Anything, Sakura."

"Good." She said confidently as she expediently unzipped his vest and pushed it off his shoulders, then slipped a hand up and under his shirt. Resting her hand over his heart she gently pushed her chakra into him. For her own peace of mind, she needed confirmation that he was truly healed and back to normal.

Kakashi was surprised at her actions, but then saw the light blush dusting her cheeks and thought how endearing it was for her to still be worried about him.

"Don't trust your fellow medics to do a good job?" he teased her.

"I trust them, but I'm not sure I trust you to stick around long enough for them to be able to finish the whole treatment plan."

His hands moved back to her hips, allowing his thumb to slip just under her loose shirt and graze her soft skin. "I'll have you know that it was Tsunade who discharged me. And you know she wouldn't have done so if she wasn't sure I was in good health."

"Hmmm...It never hurts to have a second opinion," she said as she tried to focus on her scan and any information she could find about his health.

The green glow that filtered through his shirt flickered and dissipated.

"See, I'm just fine," he smirked as he looked down at her. "But feel free to keep your hand up my shirt. However, if you keep yours up mine, does that mean I get to put mine up yours?"

Sakura felt her face bloom in a fresh hot blush. Quickly pulling her hand from his shirt and then lightly slapping his shoulder. "Just so you know, sex is currently off the table."

Tightening his hands on her hips and once more bringing them flush against each other while broadening his smirk, he raised an eyebrow at her. "Currently?" he asked, waiting a beat before he set her worries at ease. "I know Sakura, I know. I'm going to be on my best behaviour until you've heard everything I have to say—at least after this—"

His hand moved to her cheek, slipping around to cradle her head while threading his hands into the hair and slowly tilting her chin upwards. He leaned his head down until he was a hair's breadth away from her lips. His heart swelled when he saw her eyes flutter closed and she sighed in anticipation.

"Tell me to stop if you don't want me to kiss you," he whispered against her lips.

Caught up in the moment she didn't hesitate as she rose on her toes and pressed her mouth firmly into his warm and soft lips. In that moment she gave him her whole being and time stopped for her.

Wave after wave, her whole body was flooded with heat and passion. The way his hard body pressed into her while his mouth dominated hers, how his hands gently held her in place, it was all so essentially Kakashi. She'd never get enough of both of his sides: rough and gentle, dominant and so giving. She couldn't help but love everything about him.

The heat between them filled her mind and made her body flush with it. She felt both of their hearts beating like competing drums. But there was a type of gentleness to his movements that made her want their kiss to go on for the rest of the night. It was like there were two sides of him, both trying to take over their kiss, it felt as though her heart was being shocked by lightning while his warmth just had her melting into him.

She loved how familiar and how easy it was to fall back into him. His kisses were completely addictive to her and impossible to resist. Yes, she knew they had to talk, but this one kiss brought all her passion for him to the surface, and cleared her mind of any and all reason.

But then the kettle blew its whistle, startling them both from their kiss. Sakura pulled back a little, opening her eyes and looked at his face. He was slow to open his eyes, instead calming himself by resting his forehead against hers once more, placing a soft kiss on her cheek, while he regained his breath.

"It's good to see we still are amazing at that," he murmured.

She placed a soft kiss on the corner of his mouth before pulling back completely. "That's not something that we ever failed at, Kakashi. Sex was always something we knew how to do and did it very well. It was the talking and honest communication that we've struggled with, and that's something that we need to work on."

"Yes, I know. I know I come with baggage. That is why I'm here: to talk things out with you." His thumb brushed across her lips sending another shiver down her spine straight to her toes.

"You're not the only one with baggage Kakashi," she paused, trying to get her heart back to a normal rhythm. "Let me get the kettle." Sakura felt nervous all over again as her eyes flickered back and forth from his lips to his eyes. She knew that there would always be heat and passion between them, but now they needed to work on trust and communication. She stepped to the side, pouring the hot water into the two mugs as she tried to figure out what to do next.

Kakashi felt the little bit of tension between them as she puttered with the drinks.

"I'm sorry Sakura—" he said to the back of her head.

"I wanted to kiss you too. You did ask, and I took the step. But we need to talk things out, Kakashi. We need to build that trust that was broken between us. After that we can figure out if sex is back on the table."

Kakashi nodded his head, as he tried hard to not think of having sex with Sakura on her table. He had been having such vivid dreams of being with her since the last time he saw her. Several times over the past few weeks he'd woken up in a sweat, not because of physical pain, but pleasure.

To know that the heat and passion was still there gave him more hope than he could have wished for. It filled him with such optimism for their relationship, that it could be saved, that he could wake up with her, holding her, call her his—which was his fervent hope.

Sakura took both mugs of tea and moved to the living room and sat on the couch, waiting for him. Kakashi bent down and picked up his fallen vest, hanging it on the back of a chair as he passed by, and continued to where Sakura sat. He noticed how she sat with one leg bouncing while twisting the edge of her shirt as she waited for him.

Sitting beside her, he reached out and placed a hand over hers, halting her nervous habits. She turned her head to look at his face and saw his gentle smile that warmed her heart and calmed her down.

"I'm nervous too, but this is a good thing, we need to talk. And if after our talk all you want for us is friendship, I'm okay with that too, Sakura. You'll always be important to me, regardless of our relationship status."

Kakashi's words helped settle the nerves and fears that filled her head and crept into her heart. "Then I guess you should start at the beginning."

"Actually, if I could, I'd like to talk about the most recent events. I know that understanding more of the history behind it would be helpful, but I want it out of the way."

"It's your story, you tell me about it in any way you want," she said reassuringly. She knew how hard this had to be for him. She felt shy, knowing that not many knew the whole story of Hatake Kakashi. Sakura could only imagine how anxious he was, so pushing her own nerves down, she reached out and placed a supporting hand on his. She turned to sit sideways on the couch so that she could face him while resting her back against its arm.

Kakashi felt the silence grow between them, which only served to increase his anxiety. Opening up and being vulnerable was going against everything he was trained to do, but he wanted this, because he wanted her. Out of the corner of his eye he saw Sakura waiting patiently, while her toes pressed into the cushion beside his thigh. Once she would have felt comfortable enough to stretch her feet across his lap, which is something that he missed dearly. Kakashi missed that easiness between them and the only way he was going to get it back was by talking.

So he started with what he could. "I spoke to Naruto and Tsunade and they filled me in on the fuzzy parts. Of how Mio found Naruto and alerted him to my missing status and you being taken. He told me that it had taken Mio about 80 minutes to track him down from where you were taken, to the Hokage's office and then to his home. From there it only apparently took Naruto moments to find us and rescue us. It felt longer than just 80 minutes," he admitted dispiritingly.

Sakura stayed silent, allowing Kakashi to say his piece. "Especially the end." He paused with a sigh and a shudder. "When he took you to the other room, he told me what he was going to do to you. It scared me, Sakura, terrified me that he was going to rape you and I wasn't going to be able to stop him." He kept his eyes trained on the far wall, clenching his hands into tight fists letting his nails bite into his skin.

"Oh Kakashi, I'm so sorry, I didn't know. He didn't... he didn't touch me," Sakura whispered as she felt her heart constrict with sorrow for what he was led to believe. Leaning forward she placed her hand over his fist until he unfurled his hand and let her thread her fingers through his.

"I know. I'm sure I broke all sorts of rules about confidentiality, but I got that much out of Tsunade. She wasn't easy to pump for information since she's so protective of you, but she did eventually cave in."

"I'm glad she told you. I'm sorry I didn't know."

"It's not your fault. None of this is your fault. The therapist I'm seeing keeps telling me it's not _my_ fault either—not that I believe him. What I know with certainty that I'm at fault for is withholding important information from you Sakura." He sighed and reached up to run a hand through his silvery locks in reflex. He undid his hitai-ate, pulled it from his head and stared at the Konoha emblem. Carefully he placed it on the couch beside him and took a deep breath.

"When I first found out that someone was potentially after me, we had only just started sleeping together. And I know that's not really a good excuse, and it may even come off as if I focused more on the physical aspect of our relationship, but it wasn't anything more than a possibility at that point. Plus, I honestly thought I could handle anything that came my way. I figured I could protect you from anything that came up." His one hand dropped to his lap once more, while she gently squeezed the other.

"At least that was the reasoning that I came up with at the time. It made sense, again, at the time. But I know now that that wasn't the best choice.

"Honestly, I thought that part of my life was in the past and would never come back to haunt me again. I hoped I buried that part of my life long ago with the rest of my ghosts and what's more, I believed that if it would resurface looking for revenge, I'd be its only target, that it'd be mine alone to suffer. Never in a million years had I thought you'd get tangled up in my past.

"As for what happened while we were in there, Sakura, there's a few reasons for my reactions, and you might not agree with them all. But I still stand by everything I did down there," he sighed and flopped his head back to rest on the back of the couch and stared up at the ceiling.

"Yes, I guess you could say that I gave up to a point since I chose to allow him to use my body to vent his anger. But I couldn't risk provoking him in any way, not when he could take it out on you. I couldn't stand the thought of him turning on you and hurting you more than he already had. Those were my consequences to bear since I was the one that had wronged him. That's on me, Sakura."

"Kakashi, that's on him. _He_ hurt us. _He_ nearly killed you and he only threatened to hurt me. It's Takeo's fault, not yours," she tried to reassure him. But she saw how he shuddered at the mention of Takeo's name. She squeezed his hand, trying to ease some of his fears and worries.

"That's what the therapist told me too. But some of the things—" Kakashi paused and closed his eyes as if the words were too painful to even speak. "— _he_ said about what I could have done for the Nohara family is true. I wasn't the best person back then. I was self centered, conceited and being a good shinobi was everything to me."

Sakura immediately wanted to disagree with his negative view of himself. "You were still a child, thrown into the middle of a bloody war. People made decisions on how best to survive. Rin's brother had no right to blame you for that. You can't keep holding on to the past like that, otherwise it will consume all of you."

Kakashi rolled his head along the back of the couch and raised a tired eyebrow at her. "You sound suspiciously like my therapist, Sakura."

Sakura smiled but rolled her eyes at him. "Maybe you need to start listening to your therapist and start being a little kinder to yourself, Kakashi," she accused teasingly.

"I know, I'm going to try. I'm going to do my best to put the past where it belongs: in the past; And try to forgive myself for the way I reacted to situations that were out of my control. These are some of the things I know I need to work on. That's some of my baggage Sakura."

"I know, and I think it's a really good thing that you're trying to heal and forgive yourself, Kakashi. It takes a strong person to be able to do that." Wanting to show him that she meant what she said, she quickly leaned forward and pecked him on his cheek then sat back with a blush furiously covering her face.

He studied her carefully for a moment, trying to read her emotions beyond the blush. "Now that you've heard my side about it all, I'd like to hear your thoughts." His heart rate spiked as he waited for her to say something—anything.

He noticed how quickly her mood changed before his eyes. "Kakashi…" she mumbled as she pulled her hand from his and brought her knees up to her chest, wrapping her arms around her legs. She gazed in his direction, but was having a hard time looking him in the eyes. She felt nervous and scared having to come outright and explain her feelings and the way she acted.

Since she last saw him, she spent some time trying to figure out why she had been so angry, and the root cause of her anger was the lack of trust he had in her, and her own inability to trust. Sakura knew that much of her anger was rooted in fear of being abandoned, and she knew she had lashed out too harshly during their fight in the hospital.

When she had been left behind before as a child, it bruised her self confidence. When Naruto and Sasuke left the village following their own paths and Kakashi himself had ignored her existence, leaving her to her own devices without a second thought, she had been hurt. It had shocked her and it became something she'd struggle with ever since. She knew that the situations were different, that it was in the past and this is the present, but she didn't want to be seen as someone who's importance was negligible, someone not worthy enough to be told about such things.

"Kakashi, what you did and _didn't do_ , hurt. To me, it made me feel as if I wasn't important enough to be trusted with the information that someone was _possibly_ after you. You couldn't bother to give me the heads up that something was _possibly_ going on. If there's no trust between us, how could there be love?" she ended in a distraught whisper.

He opened his mouth to speak, but she held up her hand, halting him from voicing his thoughts. "Kakashi, I know there are strong feelings between us. Mixed up and maybe even messy feelings, but definitely strong ones. Maybe I'm a little afraid that they're more rooted in the physical than anything else. I don't know what to trust—and I know that's half on me."

"I'm sorry I made you feel that way, Sakura. I'm so sorry that I've damaged the trust between us," he said sullenly.

Kakashi wanted to reach out and have any type of connection with her, but he wasn't sure how'd she react. Heaving a heavy sigh, he slumped his head forward looking down to his lap. He noticed how her toes had shifted to press lightly against his thigh. He wanted to pick up her feet and stretch them across his lap, just to have that contact between them. He couldn't wait for the awkwardness between them to dissipate and to grow comfortable with each other once more.

Sakura sighed and hugged her knees tighter to her chest. "I have my own baggage too, Kakashi, and I have to work to get past that or at least work at it so it doesn't make me as upset as I became." Taking a deep breath, she paused, closing her eyes and forcing herself to say the scary things that she kept so close to her heart. "To be honest Kakashi, I fear being abandoned, I even fear giving you my heart, no matter how much I want to."

That time, Kakashi did reach out and put his hand over hers, gently rubbing his thumb across her knuckles. "What can I do to help?"

"Honestly, I think talking is what we need to do most. While that mysterious vibe works for the general population, it doesn't work for me. I would like to know more about your past and about you. Even though we've known each other for so long, there's still so much I really don't know about you. And I want to know it, Kakashi. All of it. The good and the bad."

"I can do that. It'll take a while, but I want to share it all with you Sakura."

"And I want to hear it, Kakashi. I also want to share more of myself too." She smiled at him. Wiggling her toes against his thigh brought a slight smile to his face. While she waited for him to begin talking, she studied the way he looked. He appeared calm, but she could see the bags under his eyes and the creases there looked deeper. She knew the signs of someone who wasn't sleeping and who probably wasn't taking proper care of themselves, despite being physically healthy. Her mothering side immediately came out and made her worry for him.

It was impossible not to have thought and worried about him over the past few weeks, and from the look of him her worries were founded in truth. He looked just a little bit thinner, his chin a little more angular than normal. More signs for her to feel guilty about.

"Sakura? Where did your mind wander off to?" he asked, startling her out of her own thoughts.

"Sorry. Please, go on."

"No, tell me what you were thinking. Remember? Trust and truth. I want to hear what's on your mind while I tell you everything." He reached out and pushed a few strands of hair behind her ear.

"You look tired, Kakashi. Have you been getting any sleep? And eating enough?"

He smiled gently at her. "Always the medic. Yes, Sakura. I'm eating and sleeping well enough."

"Are you sure?" she demanded softly.

"You checked me over 20 minutes ago and saw for yourself that I'm healed and fit," he teased while cocking an eyebrow and smirking at her, remembering how her warm hand felt against his bare chest.

"I know, but—"

"I'm fine Sakura. Promise," he said as he cupped her cheek and placed his thumb over her lips while forcing her eyes on his. He gave her his brightest smile, trying his best to convince her that he was truly fine.

It helped how wonderful he looked whenever he smiled, but she'd always be a worrier at heart. She hesitated while studying him carefully. "Okay, if you say so." She could tell that they were both still feeling awkward with each other, while trying their best to reassure the other. This was another thing that they could at least work on together.

"So I guess I'll start at the beginning. I was born on September 15 and my father told me that he and my mother had been trying to get pregnant for years. The labour had complications and my mother died within a week of me being born. So my father raised me alone," he explained calmly.

Sakura listened carefully as he told her about some of his earliest memories and some of the things that he was told by his father and others by elders. She watched him as he spoke. The tone and pitch of his voice was even and almost unfeeling at times while he recounted the things that happened. But every once in a while she would catch the bits of raw emotion in his voice that he just wasn't able to hide.

He told her of when he was a child and how he was a horrible little monster, which got worse as he got older and more capable. He mentioned how his ego was big despite his father's many attempts at teaching him some humility.

Once, when his father came back from a mission that had been labeled as a failure, he told Sakura of how rude and awful he was to his father, despite how his father tried to explain the difference between a failed mission with all shinobi surviving versus a successful mission gleaned from the the sacrifice of loyal shinobi. Kakashi recounted how he was too young to really understand his father and how good of a person he truly was.

Kakashi narrated so many details that it took them hours before he had even gotten to the part where he graduated to chunin. Sakura felt her eyes tear up as she heard of his early childhood traumas and trials. Her heart broke for the young boy who found his father dead on the floor. It was then when she reached out to his hands to try to console the child that was. The more she heard of his story, the more she understood him.

Sakura asked questions, shyly at first, but as Kakashi answered each of her queries as quickly as they came, she grew bolder and asked more. She noticed that he wasn't hesitating in telling her everything he could remember and that came to mind. She was surprised but appreciative of how open he was about his past, knowing that none of this was easy for him. Remembering and telling her about all his old ghosts, even in this situation, was probably one of the hardest things someone can do.

When he recalled the deaths of Obito and Rin, she could tell how fresh it all was for him and how deep the wounds still were. Understanding him more than ever, and wanting to show not only support, but love for him, she pulled him into a hug and held onto him tightly. She tried hard to stay strong for him then, but as she felt her neck wet with tears, she abandoned the idea of keeping him at arm's length and held him even more fiercely. Threading her fingers into his hair she lightly dragged her fingernails over his scalp, doing for him what she always found comforting.

He hung on to her as if she was his only life line until he settled once more. When he finally pulled back and looked down at her, he tried to look strong but only came off as bashful and shy.

"You know, Kakashi, sometimes a good cry can be cathartic. I know society demands you to always have that strong male demeanor, but throw that shit away. You're human, and it's healthy to get those feelings out."

Kakashi smiled ruefully at her. "I think talking to you about it is more of a cathartic release than anything else. I guess I didn't know how much these things needed to come out to someone I trust." He took her hand and brought it up to his mouth and kissed her palm while keeping his eyes trained on hers. "Thank you, Sakura."

She blushed and stuttered out, "You're welcome." The way he said it, made it sound more like a declaration of love than just a simple 'thanks', especially with the way he looked at her.

They broke frequently for more tea, lunch and now for dinner. Each time they paused, there was more of a familiarity between them. With preparing the meal, they worked as a team, chopping vegetables, cooking meat, adding spices and enjoying the process of being together. Bumping shoulders, brushing hands, and pressing into each other as if they had been doing this routine for years instead of months.

There was such a natural potency between them that it was easy for Sakura to forget the recent issues. In the kitchen there was a bit of a teasing spin to their actions, especially when he stood behind her as she stirred the pot and looked over her shoulder. She could tell how he enjoyed reminding her physically of his presence, which she was sure that he was also enjoying thoroughly.

It was a different kind of flirting than before. Now it was more based on wanting to be with each other, rather than the pure sexual desire—which was something they both still keenly felt.

After they finished dinner they cleaned up the dishes and the kitchen, making sure everything was neat and tidy—something else they both had in common.

Once everything was put away, they moved back to the couch with a fresh cup of tea in their hands. They sat side by side this time, feet outstretched on the coffee table with their thighs pressing into each other. Without thinking much of it, Kakashi stretched his arm across her shoulders and played with the ends of her hair. He noticed how comfortably her hand rested on his thigh while she snuggled into his side and placed her head against his shoulder.

Sighing a mental sigh of relief, he kissed her rosy strands and picked up where he left off earlier. He retold the stories of his ANBU days and the close friendships he built with some of the people she knew as well. He told her of his teenage years and his early twenties. Sometimes he could get a giggle out of her with comic stories of Gai, and other times he could tell she'd get emotional over something else she considered another hardship for him. It was those times she reached up and kissed his cheek and joined her hand with his, which brought him such comfort and love.

It had grown late into the night when he noticed Sakura becoming more and more quiet. The weather outside was still gusting and storming which made Kakashi happy that he was warm and dry with Sakura. When he paused in his tale and looked down at her, he noticed she had fallen asleep against his side. Smiling to himself he settled and just enjoyed the peace and quiet while she slept snuggled against him. That moment was perfection to him and he wanted to have this everyday for the rest of his life.

Selfishly he stayed still as long as he could, enjoying the warmth between them. But when she shifted against him and woke herself up a little, he made a quick decision to put her to bed and head out. As much as he wanted to spend the night with her, what he wanted more was a life with her. And the only way to achieve that was to restrain from the physical aspect and bare a part of him that he wasn't used to baring. But he gladly would for her.

As carefully as he could, he extracted himself from her embrace while carefully slipping his arms under her knees and around her back so that he could pick her up. As he brought her to his chest, the shift caused her to finally awaken enough to notice something changing.

"Kakashi?" she mumbled drowsily.

"It's okay, you just fell asleep. It's late and you'll be more comfortable in your bed than on the couch." He couldn't help how his heart jumped a beat or two when she relaxed in his arms and nuzzled her cheek against his shoulder.

He didn't bother turning the lights on as he moved quietly to her room, he didn't need them. Remembering it perfectly, he moved to the side of her bed and laid her down carefully, trying his best not to wake her further. But when her hand reached out for his, he couldn't regret waking her.

"Kakashi, is it still raining out?" she asked sleepily.

"Yes, it's still storming," he confirmed.

She turned her head and looked up at him and with a flash of lightning outside she saw his face clearly.

"Stay."

"Sakura, I..."

"Just sleep, Kakashi. I'm still serious about the no sex thing for a bit. But if you want you can spend the night."

Kakashi contemplated her offer. He was determined to make things right between them, but he wasn't sure if spending the night would be the right or wrong thing to do at this point. He longed to hold her in his arms for the night. Longed to be comforted by her warmth and scent—his mind was filled with the memories of such instances, but it was never as good as the real thing.

"The rain won't hurt me..." he trailed off as he stood in place, watching her watch him. Her face remained blank as she turned her back to him and got comfortable in her bed.

"Up to you. But I know I'd sleep better with you closer," she mumbled.

Unsure of what to do, he left her room to tidy up the tea from her coffee table. He looked around her home, feeling the pull of staying there. What stuck with him most was not the fear of being vulnerable with her, but the fear of messing things up worse than they were. He would never deny to himself or anyone else how much he wanted her and wanted to be around her. The one thing he hoped for was that he wouldn't do anything stupid throughout the night.

With his mind set, he turned off the lights and locked the front door, then moved back to her bedroom. He stopped just inside the door, letting his eyes fully adjust to the dark, just enough to discern her sleeping form. Beside the bed, he noticed the pile of clothes that she had been wearing only moments before.

He groaned as blood flushed throughout his body, especially when he saw her underwear on the ground. Now he had no doubt he was going to have a hard time. He dragged a hand down his face and sighed louder than he thought.

"Are you coming, Kakashi?"

"Are you trying to make this impossible for me?" he asked with a bit of a weak laugh.

"I can put on something if it makes you more comfortable. Can you pass me a shirt from my dresser?"

Doing as she asked he pulled out one that looked to be his, one that she 'borrowed'. "You still have this?" he asked as he held it up for her.

"Of course. I could never get rid of my favourite shirt." She smiled as she sat up and reached out for it. She looked at him curiously as he stood before her. "Kakashi? Are you okay?"

"I don't know what to do," he mumbled quietly. "I'm not used to not knowing what to do."

"I'm comfortable if you strip down to your boxers and come to bed. Does that sound okay?" she asked as she slipped on his old shirt.

"I, uh, yeah. As long as you don't hold me responsible for any bodily reactions." He paused to remember what happened before. "And please don't use your chakra on my penis again," he gently reminded her.

Laughing at the memory Sakura did her best to reassure him. "I promised you that I wouldn't do that ever again. I promise to never use my chakra without your consent, is that okay?"

Kakashi made an affirmative grunt as he pulled his shirt and undershirt off. He caught her eyes as he reached for his pants and unbuckled them. He knew he saw desire in her eyes, which gave him the confidence to slip his pants down his legs and kick them to the side.

Pulling back the covers beside her, she waited with baited breath for him to join her once more in her bed. It was nerve-wracking to have him so close beside her. She wanted this, but at the same time, it scared her a little to put her trust back in him. She released an internal sigh of relief when he crawled into bed and stretched out beside her, but not touching her.

"Kakashi? Are you comfortable?" Sakura asked quietly.

"I guess," he muttered as he stared up at the ceiling.

Sakura thought that the space between them was ridiculous since she had been almost on his lap just minutes ago. Without warning him, she rolled over, and pressed herself flush against his side. One leg nestled between his, her arm slung across his chest and her nose pressed tightly into his neck.

"Better?" she teased against his neck, feeling the shiver that ran down his body at her question.

"Tease," he replied back as he settled against her wrapping an arm around her side, and kissed her head once more. "Always have to get your way, don't you?" he said, but he hadn't felt this comfortable in weeks.

"You like my way better."

"This time, I do." He paused taking a deep breath, filling his lungs with the scent of her. "Sakura?"

"Yeah?"

"You know I love you, right?"

Sakura felt her heart melt. She knew that he still loved her, but to hear him say it without reservation, without wanting anything back from her was enough to bring a few happy tears to her eyes.

"Yes, Kakashi. I know you do. And I'm the luckiest person for it."

"Good," he said as he took a deep breath, letting the tension out.

"You know I love you too, right?" she said with a kiss to his neck.

He briefly tensed at her words, because of how much he needed to hear it. "I don't know why you do, but I know it. And thank the gods that you still do," he replied honestly.

"I never stopped, Kakashi. I don't think I could stop loving you, no matter how mad you make me sometimes," she said while giving him a solid poke to his chest.

He captured her hand in his and brought it up to his lips and kissed the back of it. "Keep that in mind, because I'm sure I'll make you mad again," he said with a small laugh.

"Try not to make it a habit. I don't like it when we fight."

"I'll try my best. I have to admit that I'm not a fan of being at odds with you either." Pressing his nose into her hair, he took a deep breath, gathering all of his courage.

"Sakura?"

"Hmm?"

"We're going to be okay, right?" he whispered as his heart lodged in his throat.

"Yes, I think so. We just need to keep doing what we've done today, Kakashi. I want you in my life, and I'm going to fight for that." She squeezed him tightly and nuzzled his skin, loving the feel of him.

"I've never been as happy as I am with you right here. And I'm going to make sure that I show you that," he took a deep breath as an idea came to him. "What do you think of a few days at a ryokan, just the two of us? Maybe a private onsen to relax and spend time together." He teasingly rubbed her hand down his chest and back up again until it rested over his quickly beating heart. "Just us, no distractions—"

"No clothes—" Sakura interjected sleepily.

"That's not exactly what I was thinking, but I'm up for it if you are," he said as he hugged her to him.

"I think that's a wonderful idea Kakashi. I think a short vacation for the two of us is exactly what we need. I'll check with work when I can take off a few days," she yawned and pushed her lips against his skin.

"Okay, and I'll find a good spot for us. Now go to sleep, love," he whispered.

"Mmm, 'kay." She nuzzled her nose into his neck and forced herself to fall asleep. Her last thoughts before sleep claimed her was of how good it felt to be back in his arms and for him to be back in her bed.

This is where they belonged.

Together.

* * *

One final note: I want to encourage anyone who is having a hard time to seek out help. None of us can do everything alone and professionals can be so important and so helpful when we're feeling down or lost. Please take care of yourself and reach out to someone who can help you. There are resources out there for everyone and even good apps that are free but can still help. Please seek them out and take care of yourself. You're not alone in this battle.

All the best


	22. Epilogue

A big hug and thanks goes to my beta, Sarcastic-Mommy! I'm so thankful that you helped me out for the last half of this story! 

This is it. This is the final piece of this story. Thank you all who have read, enjoyed and left kind reviews!

* * *

"Are you sure you want to do this? Now?" she asked as they walked up to the Hokage's tower side by side.

Kakashi smiled, but was happy that his mask hid just how big of a smile it was. "Yes, Sakura, I'm completely sure. Are you?" he asked. He walked beside her, not in his typically slouched manner, but standing tall and looking proud. Even though he kept his hands in his pockets, he allowed his arm to be constantly brushing against hers.

She looked up at him as they passed through those big double doors. She felt as if she was stepping into another world. "Yes, I'm ready."

It had been just about a month since they reconnected, and spent two days straight talking everything out. Kakashi had told her of his whole past, and she filled in the blanks in her own story that he wasn't aware of. They barely left each other's side for 48 hours—Sakura had even gone so far as to play hookie with work, something which she had never done before or even wanted to do, until then.

The sharing of their stories had filled in the gaps of who they were and helped them to rebuild that trust back up between them. It hadn't surprised her to feel a stronger bond grow the more she learned about him.

They had even gone—at Kakashi's insistence—to meet his therapist together. Sakura had felt as if she was intruding on Kakashi's private time and thoughts, but after being reassured by both Kakashi and the therapist that she was more than welcomed, she relaxed. It amazed her how much he had opened up to her. Yes, always in the privacy of his home or hers, but he no longer held anything back.

The first time they made love again it had been awkward and a bit clumsy at the beginning but it was also unhurried, filled with so much love and passion and such deep longing. He confessed to her all his wants and desires. Her face beamed bright scarlet when she discovered just how much they centered around her. He had teased her about how quickly she was to redden, but she had quickly retaliated and was able to get his face to blush with just a little teasing. From then on, it had been hard to keep their hands off of each other no matter where they were.

Then they spent four wonderful days out of the village at a high end ryokan where they enjoyed their own private onsen and had the majority of their meals brought to their room. It had been completely sinful and absolutely delightful. Kakashi had already mentioned how they should make that a yearly vacation.

Every time Sakura thought of going back to the ryokan with him, year after year, it always made her heart quicken and a pinkish tint grace her face.

"Sakura? You're blushing. What devious things are you thinking about now?" he whispered into her ear.

Brought back to the hallway of the Kage's tower, she slapped Kakashi's stomach, but looped her arm through his and kept walking, ignoring his question completely.

"Going to tell me later, are you? I like that idea very much... especially if I can make you blush like that again," he teased her once more.

"What if I make _you_ blush instead?" she threw back at him, as she squeezed his arm against her body.

"Here? In the Kage's office? I think you've already done that a few months ago. Such fond memories."

She slapped his stomach again, but this time a little harder, completely flustered that he would bring that up right now and here of all places.

"This is not the time nor place for that, Kakashi." She nearly growled at him. But she couldn't help smile as the memories of that day came rushing back to her.

"If you say so," he said cheerfully.

He just kept walking calmly, keeping her arm in his. Kakashi didn't mind the few stares they were getting as they strolled down the hall. Once, this was his office and so he knew how tongues would wag, but he certainly had nothing to be embarrassed or guilty over. He had given enough to the village throughout his whole life that now he would unashamedly take and enjoy what he wanted, which was a happy life with Sakura.

Kakashi just kept smiling, which wasn't hard with her by his side. The past month had been the best in his life. Between spending time with the woman he loved and revealing his whole history, he felt lighter and more free than he ever had before. There really wasn't much else that could make it any more perfect than it already was.

Well there was, he thought to himself, but he had already decided to wait a bit longer before they talked about what comes next. He didn't want to change the way things were between them just yet. Maybe in a couple of months he could suggest they find a place together and then he could ask her—

"Well look who we have here," Genma called out, interrupting Kakashi's train of thoughts.

Shizune and Genma were walking down the hallway towards them holding hands, both with bright smiles on their faces.

"Hello, Genma, Shizune-senpai. How are you doing today? What brings you to see our favourite leader?" Sakura joked playfully.

"I thought I was your favourite leader?" Kakashi asked, pouting at her.

"You're not the current leader, now are you?" Sakura asked as she bumped her shoulder into his and smiled up at him.

The clicking noise of the senbon against his teeth got their attention as Genma's smile grew larger. "We had to tell Naruto the good news."

It was Shizune's turn to jab her partner in his ribs.

"What? Is it still supposed to be a secret?" Genma asked comically.

Shizune sighed and rubbed her forehead carefully. "With some people, yes. As in, I don't want it announced in the hallway of the Hokage's Tower that I'm pregnant."

Sakura stood stunned with the news. She looked between them and saw the beaming grin on Genmas face and a perturbed but happy one on Shizune. Kakashi was the first to recover and stepped forward, enveloping them both in a hug, something he'd started doing recently. She thought it was sweet that Kakashi was being more open with his emotions, even if it was only with her and a few of his close friends.

Shizune and Genma were both thoroughly surprised by Kakashi's embrace. "I'm so happy for you both."

Sakura moved in and gave Shizune a hug and congratulated her. As she moved to take a step back, Shizune whispered something that had been meant only for Sakura's ears.

"You're turn," she said with a wicked grin.

"Wait, what?" Sakura whispered in confusion. Her eyes widened in complete surprise.

"What?" Kakashi mimicked loudly after overhearing what was whispered.

Sakura turned her head quickly to look at the shock that registered in Kakashi's eyes. He took her hand and squeezed it carefully but firmly and immediately started pulling her down the hallway towards the less public area and in the opposite direction from Genma and Shizune.

"You promised Sakura," Shizune sang cheerfully as Sakura was pulled into an empty conference room.

She could hear Shizune giggling as the door closed behind her.

Her mind was racing. She didn't want Kakashi thinking it was some sort of plot hatched between Shizune and herself, when in reality it was an offhanded comment from when they began their relationship. "Kakashi, before you say anything, it's not what you think."

Half ignoring what she said, he pulled down his mask and placed a finger under her chin, raising her head until she was staring into his eyes. She loved how he'd gotten back into the habit of pulling down his mask when it was just the two of them.

"You want kids?" he asked carefully.

Despite the sticky situation, honesty was something she'd always give him, even if it was embarrassing.

"Yes, I do. One day, anyways."

"With me?" he asked cautiously.

She could tell he was nervous, but wasn't sure why. "You'd be the only one I'd choose to be the father of any children I have," she said honestly.

"Really?" he asked thoroughly surprised.

His total humility in realizing that someone would choose him for a life partner and that they would also want to have and raise children with him, astonished and bewildered her. "Yes, you dolt. I love you and only you. Why are you so surprised? Why aren't you asking about why Shizune said 'my turn'?"

"That was my next question, but only after I got to kiss you," he grinned cockily at her. His hand went around her waist and he pulled her against his body and swooped in to capture her lips—

"No! Kakashi, we're already late and I don't want to make out with you in the Tower." Her hands pushed against his chest trying to hold him off. "There is a time and place for that." The past few weeks he had been so playful, teasing and most of all, loving, and she honestly couldn't get enough of him.

"Naruto won't mind. I'm sure he expects us to be a little late," he countered as he quickly pecked her on the nose, while keeping his firm grip on her hips.

"I mind."

"You know this is an equal relationship, Sakura, some of my habits are bound to rub off on you," he teased and accentuated the word rub while gripping her even tighter against his body, making sure she felt all of him. He lowered his head and growled quietly in her ear. "I'm sure I can make you change your mind. Come on Sakura, let me change your mind. I know all the good hiding spots around here."

"You're insatiable," she whispered heatedly.

"You just told me you want to have my children. You started it." His mouth captured the edge of her ear

"Can we please just get through the meeting and discuss the rest of this later, at home, behind closed doors?" she moaned and shivered at the same time. He knew all of her weak spots now, many of them he had used against her over the past few weeks.

Thankfully she knew some of his weaknesses too, and did what she could to turn the tables on him.

"Mmm... Kakashi, you know this would be rushed and not nearly as much fun as it could be if we finished the meeting quickly and went home," she purred as she shifted against him bringing her flush with his body. She shifted one of her hands to thread into his hair, scratching against his scalp while pushing herself up on her toes and nipped at his chin, two things she knew he could never resist. She felt him melt into her and become completely pliant.

"You must really want to go to this meeting, Sakura," he moaned quietly.

"I don't want to go particularly, but I do want it over." She kissed his cheek and took a step back. She straightened her clothes and turned to leave the room when he grabbed her hand and spun her around, pinned her between the door with his body and captured her lips.

He immediately dominated the kiss, gripping her ass and pulling her hard against him. Caught in the storm of his kiss, Sakura let out a moan that only seemed to edge Kakashi further. Tangling one hand in her hair, he held her in place as he devoured her, nipped at her lips and plundered her mouth ruthlessly until she completely forgot where she was.

Sakura felt as if wave after wave of lightning was rolling through her body. When he began to pull back, her instinct had her chasing his lips demanding more. But he finally resisted and left her panting against him.

"To be continued…" he said smugly.

"Five minutes," she sighed.

"What's five minutes?"

"The meeting with Naruto, smart-ass."

"Is that the way to talk to the father of your future children?" he asked as he opened the doors and walked into the hallway with his mask already back in place.

"Kakashi," she groaned.

"Come on, let's go. You've got us on a deadline and the minutes are ticking away." He held out a hand for her, which she readily took. They were just a few offices down from their destination, and it seemed Kakashi now had a reason to get to the office sooner.

As they approached the big double doors, they saw Shikamaru coming out with a typical grumpy look on his face and muttering under his breath. Sakura smiled as cheerfully as she could at him, hoping that she wasn't blushing too much and her lips weren't too reddened from Kakashi's attack.

"Shikamaru, how's Naruto treating you?" Kakashi asked politely.

Shikamaru ignored his question and just grumbled under his breath about extra paperwork, and breeding shinobi while holding the door open for the couple.

Sakura felt her face explode in a fresh blush as she entered Naruto's office, which of course was exactly when he looked up and made a face at her.

"Sakura, why is your face red? And why do your lips look like you were punched. Are you okay?" She wasn't sure how Hinata put up with him sometimes, but she should probably send over more wine for her quiet friend.

Sighing to herself, she was tempted to drag a hand down her face and chastise the Hokage as she used to when they were younger: with a smack upside the head to knock some sense into him.

"I hope you don't speak like that to everyone who walks in here," Sakura lectured him strictly.

Naruto looked at her innocently and was a little confused. "No. Just you."

Sakura rolled her eyes at him and tried to change the subject from how much she was blushing and her kiss-roughened lips.

"There's a reason why we called this meeting, Naruto." Sakura started.

"I had hoped there would be," he tried joking with her.

"Yes, Naruto. We're dating."

"As in officially, formally dating? As in you're notifying me so that you won't take missions together anymore?"

"Yes Naruto," they replied in unison.

"Okay good. Congratulations. Well, I hope you won't pass any bad habits to Sakura," he joked with Kakashi.

"Oh? And what might those be?" Kakashi asked with a raised eyebrow, but his tone of voice showed that he took the accusation seriously enough.

Sakura could only groan, half knowing where this was already heading, and she knew that neither man would just let it go in peace.

"You know, your love of reading porn and being inappropriate in public places," Naruto joked halfheartedly.

"Oh. Well then you should give that warning to Sakura and not me."

Sakura felt her jaw drop at the accusation. She turned and pointed a finger at her love. "Kakashi..." she started.

Naruto looked between the pair. "Oh? Is that so?" he asked leeringly.

Kakashi looked slowly around the room, laughing deviously. "Oh yes. Definitely good memories, even right here in this very office," he said as he continued to chuckle, not completely realizing what he had just said.

Sakura brought both of her hands up to her face and covered as much of it as possible. Mortified didn't even begin to cover how she felt.

Naruto looked stunned at his two closest friends who stood in his office. He couldn't believe what they had just insinuated. He looked around his office in horror and disbelief.

"What?! No! Not here." He exclaimed, horrified.

Sakura just lowered her head in embarrassment, her whole face going bright red, while Kakashi laughed nervously and scratched the back of his head. Even Kakashi was looking abashed at what Naruto now knew to be true.

Naruto bolted up from his chair and looked as if he was afraid to touch anything in his office. "Out!" Naruto cried emphatically pointing a finger at the doors.

Sakura and Kakashi quickly made their exit without looking back. After they closed the door to Naruto's office, they both breathed a sigh of relief.

"Well that went better than I thought it would. And it was under five minutes" Kakashi laughed.

Sakura looked up at his face, and immediately noticed that he was sporting a roguish crinkle in his eyes.

"Are you serious!?" Sakura cried out. "I'll never be able to look Naruto in the face again! Even being in that office makes me remember!" Sakura felt as if her face was going to be bright red forever.

Kakashi hummed. "I remember too." he added dreamily. "Such good memories of you taking advantage of the poor Rokudaime. Feel like reliving some of those good memories?"

"Pervert." Sakura stated as she poked him in the side.

They both jumped a little when they heard Naruto bellow out. "Shikamaru! Get in here now! I need to replace everything in my office immediately!"

Sakura and Kakashi looked at each other and then burst out laughing. Kakashi reached down and took her hand. "Take out dinner?"

Sakura squeezed his hand in reply. "Sure. Anything but ramen." she said with a smile. "And you're paying."

Kakashi squeezed hers back, then raised their joint hands to his masked lips, and lovingly kissed the back of her hand. "Yes, dear. Whatever you want."

"I like the sounds of that."

"I bet you do."

* * *

The End


End file.
